Japanese drugmaker Takeda saw its stock slide more than 5% after revealing a profit forecast for 2012 languishing well below market expectations.

Takeda has predicted a full-year operating income of 160 billion yen ($2 billion), marking a 40% drop on 2011's figure and falling under the 226 billion yen ($2.8 billion) average analyst forecast compiled by Bloomberg.

Takeda recently snapped up Swiss group Nycomed and is in the process of buying US firm URL Pharma, under a drive to increase its foothold in emerging markets and gather some new products into the fold after the demise of patents protecting its diabetes drug Actos (pioglitazone).

According to the drugmaker, its income this year will be hit by related acquisition costs, as well as a higher investment in R&D, but the figure still came as a bit of a shock to market observers and investors.

“The guidance was a major negative surprise...We had never anticipated that operating profit would fall through the 200 billion yen mark,” Credit Suisse Group analysts said in a client note, according to media reports. 

On the up side, the company said it expects net income for the current year to jump 25% to 155 billion yen ($1.9 billion), with a big helping hand from government subsidies for influenza, proceeds from the sale of marketable securities, and a tax refund related to transfer pricing.