The profit kick from the sole medicine in the cabinet of Cheshire’s Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. continued in the second quarter, with earnings and sales of its orphan treatment for a rare blood disorder up by about a third.
Alexion said net income rose 30 percent in the three months ended June 30 to $21.8 million, or 24 cents a share, up from $16.8 million, or 19 cents a share, a year earlier.
Sales of the drug, Soliris, grew 36 percent to $125.8 million in the latest quarter from $92.3 million in the 2009 second quarter amid growing patient volumes in the U.S. and Europe being treated with the drug.
Alexion engineered its small-molecule drug to treat paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), a rare disorder that can lead to anemia, fatigue, pain and difficulty breathing. Treatments with Soliris cost up to $400,000 a year.
With Japan’s recent approval of Soliris for availability in its tightly-regulated market, plus Alexion’s pursuit of additional Asian licenses and ongoing independent research into other ailments treatable with Soliris, sales should climb even higher, company officials and analysts say.
According to Reuters, Alexion’s second-quarter performance beat the outlook of analysts. Alexion also reiterated its 2010 adjusted earnings forecast of $1.63 to $1.68 a share, on sales of $515 million and $530 million. In 2009, Alexion earned $295 million, or $3.26 a share, on $387 million in sales.
At 11 a.m., Alexion shares were up 85 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $51.97.
Â
