Pfizer 2Q net up 5% on lower charges, taxes

NEW YORK: Pfizer Inc.
says it second-quarter profit is up 5 percent despite slightly lower sales, thanks to lower taxes and reduced restructuring charges from its 2009 purchase of Wyeth.

Updated 2 August 2011 17:47

ASSOCIATED PRESS

August 2, 2011 17:47

The world’s biggest drugmaker says its net income was $2.61 billion, or 33 cents per share, up from $2.48 billion, or 31 cents a share, in 2010’s second quarter.

Excluding one-time items, the New York-based maker of cholesterol fighter Lipitor and impotence pill Viagra would have made $4.73 billion, or 60 cents a share.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting earnings per share of 59 cents.

Pfizer says its revenue totaled $16.98 billion, down 1 percent despite strong growth in emerging markets. Analysts were looking for revenue of $17.02 billion.