Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
Thank you. (Operator Instructions). Our first question today is from Glenn Reicin. And please state your company name.
Glenn Reicin - Morgan Stanley
All right. Good morning, folks. Glenn Reicin, Morgan Stanley.
John Thomas
Hi, Glenn.
Tom Freyman
Hi, Glenn.
Glenn Reicin - Morgan Stanley
Lot of questions here, but let me sort of get to the point. Next year you have a couple of unknowns, I just want to know how you are going to manage this, both operationally and from an EPS guidance perspective. You have the XIENCE launch obviously timing is out of your control at this point. And then you have potential prospects of Depakote ER going off patent. Well, I know you haven't provided 2008 guidance, maybe you can walk us through something here that will give us some idea of the magnitude of the effect?
Tom Freyman
Glen, I'll take this, this is Tom. I don't know when you talk about XIENCE is an uncertainty and certainly we are very much looking forward to this November 29th panel. We are very optimistic about the product as we've been saying for sometime, and its great technology and robust safety and efficacy data as John mentioned. As you know, we've consistently forecasted a first half '08 approval for XIENCE and that is unchanged from our perspective. But, to answer your question, with contingency plan as well and even if we saw a delay, the later part of 2008 for XIENCE which we don't expect. But when we look at the momentum of what we are seeing in our business, the product growth and really what you are seeing this quarter, and what you have been seeing all year, I am very confident on our ability to deliver at least the first call mean of $3.20, which would represent accelerating EPS growth over 2007.
So, we were prepared for that in the low probably if it where to occur. Of course, as XIENCE was approved on our anticipated timeline, there would be upside to that and let's consider that as floor for our 2008 performance. For Depakote, we've been saying for sometime that Depakote ER will go off patent in the middle of next year. We have been planning for that all along and in all of our forecasting we do have patents on Depakote ER, but we've been down this road and we understand the need to plan realistically for that to be sure that '08 is not exposed in any way to any unfavorable outcome on that product. So, we've factored that in, and really it's the power of HUMIRA and the pharmaceuticals, the acceleration of Diabetes Care you are starting to see this quarter, the continued good performance in international nutrition. All of these things are going to really get us through the realistic assumption, shall we say, on Depakote for the second half of 2008.
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