Strong first-nine months sales for Roche, boosted by cancer drugs

Group sales for the first nine months of 2012 at Swiss pharmaceutical major Roche (ROG: SIX) rose 4% at constant exchange rates to 33.7 billion Swiss francs ($36.15 billion; +7% in Swiss francs), driven by new and established cancer drugs and the clinical lab business, the company announced this morning. Roche does not release profit figures at the quarterly reporting stage.

For the three months July through September, group sales rose 15% to 11.27 billion francs, beating consensus forecasts of 11.05 billion. francs. Roche confirmed its full-year outlook for 2012. Barring unforeseen events, Roche expects low to mid-single-digit sales growth at constant exchange rates for the Group and the Pharmaceuticals Division in 2012. Roche’s shares edged 0.8% higher to 184.70 francs in early morning trading.