Wyeth's 3rd-qtr profit falls 1% as sales fail to offset restructuring costs

Despite strong sales of most of its key drugs, third quarter 2007 profit at US pharmaceutical major Wyeth was down 1% on the year-earlier comparable period to $1.15 billion, or $0.84 per share. The firm said that the decline was a result of a $117.1 million charge related to productivity initiatives, coupled with a $0.06 per share charge resulting from ongoing restructuring operations.

Sales climb 9%, ahead of expectations

Revenue for the period reached $5.62 billion, up 9% on the comparable three months of 2006, ahead of the consensus forecast of analysts polled by Thomson Financial. The firm's best-performing drug product was the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor Effexor (venlafaxine), used in the treatment of depression, worldwide sales of which grew 4% to $958.0 million. Prevnar, the company's vaccine against invasive pneumococcal disease, provided the second largest turnover contribution at $634.0 million, representing growth of around 24%.