Reuters
Lucentis, cancer drug sales lift Genentech profit
Wednesday January 10, 4:21 pm ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Genentech Inc. (NYSE:DNA - News) reported higher fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday on surging sales of its new treatment, Lucentis, for the leading cause of blindness in the elderly and strong demand for its cancer drugs.
The world's second largest biotechnology company posted a net profit of $594 million, or 55 cents per share, compared with $339 million, or 31 cents per share, a year ago.
Excluding items Genentech, which is based in South San Francisco, California, earned 61 cents per shares. Analysts on average expected 55 cents per share, excluding the cost of expensing stock compensation, according to Reuters Estimates.
After soaring 70 percent in 2005, Genentech shares limped through 2006, falling about 12 percent for the year. By comparison, the broader American Stock Exchange Biotech Index (AMEX:^BTK - News) was up nearly 11 percent in 2006, although the shares of rival biotech giant Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - News) were off about 13 percent for the year.