NEW YORK (AP) -- Drug maker Pfizer Inc. said Tuesday that its third-quarter profit more than tripled on higher revenue and lower charges compared with the year before. The results beat Wall Street estimates, and Pfizer raised its earnings outlook.
The world's biggest drugmaker said its net income was $3.74 billion, or 48 cents a share. That's up from $866 million, or 11 cents per share, in 2010's third quarter.
The maker of blockbuster cholesterol drug Lipitor and impotence pill Viagra says adjusted income was 62 cents per share. Revenue rose 7 percent to $17.2 billion, including a 6 percent boost from favorable currency exchange rates.
The results beat expectations for adjusted earnings of 55 cents per share on revenue of $16.43 billion.
Pfizer raised its 2011 profit forecast to a range of $1.20 to $1.30 per share, from $1.09 to $1.24 per share. Excluding one-time items, it expects earnings per share of $2.24 to $2.29, also up several cents.
The company reaffirmed its forecast for 2012, the first full year after Lipitor, the world's top-selling drug with about $11 billion in annual revenue, loses its U.S. patent on Nov. 30. The company expects revenue of about $63.5 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $2.25 to $2.35.
"Overall, I am very pleased with our financial performance despite the impact of product losses of exclusivity totaling approximately $950 million this quarter and the challenges posed by current global market and economic conditions," CEO Ian Read said in a statement, adding, "We remain well prepared for the Lipitor U.S. loss of exclusivity later this month and in various other countries shortly thereafter."
U.S. revenue fell 3 percent to $6.9 billion, but international revenue, boosted by currency exchange rates, rose 15 percent to $10.3 billion.
