GlaxoSmithKline PLC said Thursday its first-quarter profit rose 25 percent compared to a year ago, and forecast a 10 percent boost in earnings per share this year.
GlaxoSmithKline, the world's second-largest pharmaceutical company, said net profit in the three months to March 31 was 1.5 billion pounds ($2.7 billion), compared to 1.2 billion pounds in the first quarter of 2005.
Sales of 5.81 billion pounds ($10.4 billion) were up 15 percent compared to the year-ago quarter thanks to strong revenues from asthma drug Advair/Seretide, diabetes treatment Avandia/Avandamet and the vaccines unit, the company said.
''This has been a quarter of strong financial performance, driven by top-line pharma sales growth of 10 percent,'' Chief Executive Officer Jean-Pierre Garnier said in a statement.
Shares in Glaxo rose 3.6 percent to 15.39 pounds ($27.50) on the London Stock Exchange.
AstraZeneca raised its earnings forecasts for 2006 this morning after reporting a 36% increase in operating profits to $1.98 billion, helped by cost-cutting, as sales advanced 8%.
The figures - combined with a just-announced licensing deal for a "potential blockbuster" drug for breast cancer - drove up AstraZeneca's shares by a little over 1% to £30.25 on the London Stock Exchange.
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