Jones Lang LaSalle


Schering-Plough profit beats forecasts
Thursday April 20, 7:10 am ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Schering-Plough Corp. (NYSE:SGP - News) on Thursday reported first-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street expectations, helped by increased sales of its treatments for infections and allergies.

The company also said demand for the cholesterol drugs it shares with Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK - News) was strong, although sales from the joint venture are not recorded as part of Schering-Plough's quarterly results.

The Kenilworth, New Jersey-based drug maker had a net profit of $350 million, or 24 cents per share, compared with a profit of $105 million, or 7 cents a share, a year before.

Schering-Plough shares have slipped about 10 percent this year compared with a rise of about 1.5 percent in the American Stock Exchange Pharmaceutical Index.

Excluding a gain from the change in accounting principles, the company earned 22 cents per share. Analysts on average had expected 14 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.
Quarterly sales rose 8 percent to $2.6 billion, but would have risen 12 percent to $2.9 billion if the company had booked its 50 percent share of cholesterol-drug sales from its venture with Merck.