"Extraordinary"Viagra Sales Lift Pfizer Earnings

Pfizer has posted second-quarter revenues of $3.63 billion, an increaseof 25% over the corresponding quarter last year. Net income soared 38% to $628 million, while earnings per share increased 34% to $0.47. For the first six months, turnover was just under $7 billion, up 18%, with earnings rising 25% to $1.3 billion. The only downside for the company was that the strong dollar reduced revenues by 3%.

Though Pfizer credits its strong performance in part to gains for its alliance products Lipitor (atorvastatin) and Aricept (donepezil), and the successful introduction of the antibiotic Trovan (trovafloxacin), it acknowledges that its massive growth is principally due to the phenomenon of Viagra (sildenafil).

Viagra Sales Over $400 Million As of June 26, Pfizer says that 2.7 million prescriptions for the impotence drug were filled and $411 million in sales recorded, including substantial trade stocking of the product. Pfizer added that, pending approval in Europe by the fourth quarter, it plans to introduce Viagra in 50 countries by the end of the year.