Amgen Starts Year With Strong Earnings

Amgen Inc. beat Wall Street expectations for earnings and revenue in its first fiscal quarter. The biopharmaceutical company in Thousand Oaks, which develops drug therapies for treating diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and other conditions, reported Tuesday that it had net income of $2.7 billion for the period ended March 31. The figure represents a 6 percent increase over the $2.33 billion reported for the same quarter last year, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Earnings for the quarter were $3.47 a share, compared to $3.15 the year prior. Analysts on average had expected earnings of $3.24, according to Thomson Financial. First quarter revenue was up 2 percent year over year, coming in at around $5.5 billion. Wall Street projections for revenue were $5.43 billion. Amgen (AMGN) reported earnings after trading ended Tuesday, when the company’s stock fell about $2.72, or 1.6 percent, to close at $171.94 on the Nasdaq.