THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Amgen Inc. on Thursday reported third-quarter net income of $2.02 billion.
The Thousand Oaks, California-based company said it had profit of $2.68 per share. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, came to $3.02 per share.
The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 12 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $2.79 per share.
The world’s largest biotech drugmaker posted revenue of $5.81 billion in the period, which also beat Street forecasts. Six analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $5.74 billion.
Amgen earned $1.86 billion, or $2.44 per share, on revenue of $5.72 billion in the year-ago quarter.
Sales of the company’s top-seller, Enbrel, were flat at $1.45 billion as higher net selling price was offset by competition and unfavorable changes in inventory levels.
Further competition for Enbrel looms. During the quarter U.S. regulators approved the first near-copy, or biosimilar, of Enbrel called Erelzi, developed by Swiss drug giant Novartis. The anti-inflammatory drug, which is not yet being sold, was approved for the same indications as Enbrel, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and other immune system disorders.
Amgen now expects full-year earnings in the range of $11.40 to $11.55 per share, with revenue in the range of $22.6 billion to $22.8 billion. It previously expected to post annual adjusted earnings per share in the range of $11.10 to $11.40 with revenue in the range of $22.5 billion to $22.8 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect annual earnings per share of $11.36 on revenue of $22.77 billion.
Amgen shares have declined 1 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has risen 4.7 percent. In after-hours trading, the stock shed about 1.5 percent to $158.10.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for updates on the latest pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical manufacturing news!