Pfizer Earnings 2011: Drug Giant Beats Profit, Sales Forecasts

Pfizer Inc reported better-than-expected quarterly results, helped by sales growth of its prescription drugs in emerging markets and its animal health, nutritionals and consumer healthcare products.

The world's biggest drugmaker said on Tuesday it earned $3.74 billion, or 48 cents per share in the third quarter, including a $1.3 billion after-tax gain on the recent sale of its Capsugel business.

That compared with a profit of $866 million, or 11 cents per share, in the year-earlier period, when the company took a big charge for asbestos litigation.

Excluding special items, Pfizer earned 62 cents per share. Analysts on average expected 56 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Global revenue rose 7 percent to $17.19 billion, well above Wall Street expectations of $16.42 billion.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson; Editing by Derek Caney)

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.

Comments

[pj-smith]

12:55 PM on 11/01/2011

big pharma is just one of the evilles foisted on innocent citizens

[RageVsMachine]

12:01 PM on 11/01/2011

Big Pharma is the biggest reason we're still in Afghanistan!

[Raccoon1]

09:18 AM on 11/01/2011

Any mention of the so-called "shortage" of life saving drugs that has caused the prices to rise in multiple hundreds of percent? Produce less, charge more. Perfect profit making scheme.