Pfizer falls short of earnings forecast, shares fall pre-market

US healthcare giant Pfizer Inc was 1.3% lower in pre-market trading on Tuesday after it fell short of analysts' estimates for its net income for the fiscal fourth quarter.

The consensus from Wall Street was that Pfizer would reach 50 cents per share, but the pharmaceutical firm could only muster 47 cents in their earnings reports.

The net income of $775m for the quarter was well above the same figure for the corresponding quarter of 2015, where it posted a loss.

Pfizer did beat experts' expectations for its quarterly revenue, posting $13.63bn having been forecast to reach $13.55bn.

The company's share price has fallen 4% since the beginning of the year, as US President Donald Trump vowed to take aim at the pharmaceutical industry, which he described as "disastrous".

"I was pleased with the company's overall performance during 2016 and believe both of our businesses executed well despite a challenging operating environment," said Pfizer chief executive and chairman Ian Read.

"We generated attractive operational revenue and earnings growth driven by our major products within both the Innovative Health and Essential Health businesses."