Wednesday's Health Winners & Losers

Earnings bumped a few health stocks, such as Barr Pharmaceuticals(BRL), into the green Wednesday.

Barr got a 4.1% bump from an earnings beat. The generic-drug specialist earned 84 cents a share excluding items, while analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had predicted 71 cents a share. Subsequently, the stock gained $2.17, to $55.

Also, Somaxon Pharmaceuticals(SOMX) gained $1.70, or 16.5%, to $12. Post-close Tuesday, Somaxon reported a second-quarter loss of $6 million, or 33 cents a share, narrowed from $14.7 million, or 82 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.

Medicis Pharmaceutical(MRX), which develops and markets dermatological and aesthetics products, reported earnings and an upbeat outlook for the markets in which it competes. Medicis raised its guidance to $1.19 a share from its previous prediction of $1.12. The company's stock added 85 cents, or 3%, to $29 on Wednesday.

On the other hand, device maker NMT Medical(NMTI) suffered an analyst downgrade Wednesday after reporting earnings earlier in the week. Needham & Co lowered its rating for NMT Medical to hold from buy. For the quarter, the company reported a loss of $2.6 million, or 20 cents a share, compared with a loss of $1.9 million, or 15 cents a share, in the 2006 period. For the third quarter, NMT expects revenue of $6.6 million, vs. $6.9 million last year. Its shares fell $1.01, or 9.4%, to $9.70.