GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK) announced strong start to 2006 with significant growth in sales and earnings during the first quarter ended March 2006. Its net profit improved by 25.1 per cent to £1,530 million from £1,223 million in the corresponding period of last year. The turnover of pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare segments went up by 15.4 per cent to £5,813 million from £5,036 million. The earning per share improved to 26.3 pence from 21 pence in the last period. The Board has declared a first interim dividend of 11 pence per share.
Commenting on the performance for the quarter, JP Garnier, CEO, said, "This has been a quarter of strong financial performance, driven by top-line pharma sales growth of 10 per cent. It has also been a quarter of good pipeline news. In particular, the efficacy seen in Tykerb's first phase III trial is very compelling and it gives us confidence that we will be able to launch a significant new treatment for breast cancer next year. We also received strong data on Cervarix this quarter, demonstrating its potential to offer long lasting and broad protection against cervical cancer."
The pharmaceutical sales increased by 10 per cent to £5 billion in the qurater, dirven by strong turnover in the USA with sales of £2.6 billion, a growth of 15 per cent. European sales increased by one per cent to £1.4 billion were impapcted by lower seasonal use of anti-biotics compared with last year. Sales in international markets roose strong by 12 per cent to £1 billion.
The total sales of Seretide/Advair, for asthma and COPD, rose by 12 per cent to £816 million and that of Avandia products rose by 24 per cent to £384 million. GSK's vaccines business had another excellent quarter with total sales rising by 44 per cnet to £366 million. The company filed its new flu vaccine, FluLaval in the USA. GSK expects to provide up to 30 milliom doses of seasonal influenza vaccine to the US market for the 2006/07 flu season. The company had 149 pharmaceutical and vaccine projets in clinical development, comprising 95 NCEs, 29 PLEs and 25 Vaccines as at the February 2006.