King 3Q profit falls on charges, but tops forecast

King Pharmaceuticals' 3rd-quarter profit falls on Alpharma buyout, but tops forecast

• On 10:43 am EST, Thursday November 5, 2009

BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) -- Drug developer King Pharmaceuticals said Thursday its third-quarter profit was cut in half by charges for related to its $1.6 billion buyout of rival Alpharma Inc.

Still, the company topped Wall Street forecasts, with revenue gaining ground from the addition of Alpharma's animal health unit.

King earned $42.5 million, or 17 cents per share, compared with profit of $82.5 million, or 34 cents per share, during the same period a year prior. Revenue rose 19 percent to $463.3 million from $388.4 million.

Excluding charges related to the December Alpharma buyout, the company earned 29 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected, on average, profit of 27 cents per share on $445 million in revenue.

Revenue from branded drugs fell 6 percent to $283 million in the quarter, due primarily to generic competition for the blood-pressure medication Altace, and lower sales of the bleeding-control drug Thrombin-JMI.

King recorded $96 million in revenue from its animal health business, which it acquired in the Alpharma deal. Its Meridian unit gained 6 percent to $72 million. Royalty revenue fell to $12 million.

Shares of King Pharmaceuticals rose 46 cents, or 4.5 percent, to $10.65.