Alcon's 4th-qtr 2006 profits up 484%

Switzerland's Alcon, a specialist developer of products for the eye care market, said that its income for the fourth quarter of 2006 was $354.7 million, up from the $60.7 million it earned in the comparable period in 2005. The company explained that profits in the year-earlier quarter had been affected by charges of $207.7 million relating to patent litigation.

The firm's income per share of $1.16 was also much improved in comparison with the $0.19 it recorded in the final three months of 2005. It was higher than the consensus estimate of $1.03 from a survey of analysts conducted by Thompson Financial.

Alcon said that another factor in its improved performance was the 16.1% increase in its sales, which hit $1.22 billion. The firm said that this growth had been driven by higher revenues from its pharmaceutical division, up 20.4% to 475.9 million, as well as an 11.3% expansion, to $582.5 million, in turnover derived from its surgical business.