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Abbott profits rise 10%
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July 9, 1999: 10:16 a.m. ET
Drugmaker matches Wall St. forecasts despite mild sales growth
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Pharmaceutical and medical products company Abbott Laboratories, fresh from two recent acquisition announcements, posted a 10 percent increase in second-quarter net profits Friday, matching Wall Street's expectations despite only modest sales growth.
Abbott (ABT) recorded net earnings of $642.7 million, or 42 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended June 30, compared with profit of $585.6 million, or 38 cents per diluted share, in the year-ago period. The results met the forecasts of analysts polled by the First Call Corp., which tracks corporate results.
Sales grew 5.8 percent to $3.24 billion. The company said the relatively stronger U.S. dollar dragged down sales internationally.
Last month, the Abbott Park, Ill.-based company announced the acquisition of ALZA Corp. (AZA), which specializes in urology and oncology treatments, in a $7.3 billion stock swap. That deal is expected to close by the end of the year. On Thursday, Abbott agreed to buy medical device maker Perclose Inc. (PERC) for about $680 million in stock.
"During the first half of the year, Abbott took major strides toward its future," CEO Miles D. White said in a statement.
During the quarter, the company received U.S. regulatory approval for its Norvir protease inhibitor used to treat AIDS, and filed an application with Takeda Chemical Industries Ltd. of Japan for approval of the drug Uprima to treat male sexual dysfunction.
R&D costs totaled $315 million for the quarter, a 2.5 percent increase.
For the first six months of the year, net income rose 11 percent to $1.31 billion, or 85 cents per diluted share. In the 1998 period, income totaled $1.18 billion, or 76 cents per share. Sales for the first half of 1999 rose 7 percent to $6.54 billion.
Abbott stock closed down 11/16 at 42-7/8 on Thursday.
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Abbott Laboratories
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