Amgen Profit Leaps 33% on Epogen Surge

Amgen Inc., the world’s largest biotechnology company, said Thursday that its fourth-quarter earnings rose 33%, beating analysts’ estimates, as sales of its blockbuster anemia drug Epogen soared.

Net income for the period ended Dec. 31 rose to $239 million, or 90 cents a share, from $180 million, or 67 cents, a year earlier. Results beat the 84-cent average estimate of analysts surveyed by First Call Corp.

Epogen sales rose 35% to $391 million from $289 million a year earlier.

Amgen’s earnings have been rising since the government in March relaxed restrictions on reimbursements for Epogen under the Medicare program.

The Thousand Oaks-based company’s earnings have exceeded estimates by at least 4 cents in four out of the last six quarters.

Earnings were released after the close of U.S. markets. Amgen shares rose as high as $124 in after-hours trading. They had risen $3.69 to close at $119.56 on Nasdaq during regular trading hours.

The company also announced a 2-for-1 stock split, which will be distributed on Feb. 26.

At a Glance

Other earnings, excluding one-time gains and charges unless noted:

* Safeway Inc., the No. 2 U.S. supermarket chain, said Thursday that fiscal fourth-quarter earnings rose 19% as it squeezed more profit from each sale by improving how it operates stores and buys and distributes goods.

Net income rose to $255 million, or 50 cents a share, from $214.9 million, or 43 cents, a year earlier. Safeway was expected to earn 48 cents for the quarter ended Jan. 2, the average estimate of analysts polled by First Call.

The Pleasanton-based company operates 1,497 stores in the U.S. and Canada. Sales at stores open at least a year rose 3%.

* Bergen Brunswig Corp., the third-largest U.S. drug wholesaler, said fiscal first-quarter profit rose 31% and said it won a seven-year supply contract valued at about $6.3 billion.

Orange-based Bergen said net earnings rose to $27.9 million, or 27 cents a share, from $21.3 million, or 21 cents, a year earlier. It was expected to earn 26 cents a share for the period ended Dec. 31, the average estimate of analysts. Revenue rose to $3.96 billion from $3.17 billion a year earlier.

Bergen said Walnut Creek-based Longs Drug Stores Corp. agreed in principle to have Bergen be the sole supplier of drugs, health and beauty aids and over-the-counter medical products to Longs’ 380 stores in the West.

* Unova Inc., a Beverly Hills-based machine tool maker, reported fourth-quarter earnings for the period ended Dec. 31 of $39.5 million, or 72 cents a share, contrasted with a net loss of $5.5 million, or 10 cents, a year earlier. Revenue rose to $578.3 million from $332.1 million in the 1997 period.

* Dames & Moore Group, a Los Angeles-based engineering and construction company, said fiscal third-quarter earnings rose 2.7% as its environmental clean-up business increased. The company, which designs light-rail systems and manages construction at New York’s Kennedy Airport, said net income rose to $5.29 million, or 29 cents a share, in the quarter ended Dec. 25 from $5.15 million, or 29 cents, a year earlier. The company was expected to earn 30 cents. Revenue rose 45% to $172.3 million from $118.7 million, reflecting its $117-million purchase in August of Radian International.

* MetaCreations Corp. of Carpinteria reported a net loss for the quarter ended Dec. 31 of $3.7 million, or 15 cents a share, compared with net income of $1 million, or 4 cents, a year earlier. Revenue declined 29% to $11.4 million from $16.1 million in the year-ago quarter.

* Santa Monica-based Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch Inc. reported a fourth-quarter net loss for the period ended Dec. 31 of $16.9 million, or 26 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $20.6 million, or 35 cents, a year earlier. Revenue rose to $13.6 million from $5.6 million.

* Pleasanton-based PeopleSoft Inc., the No. 2 business-management software maker, said its fourth-quarter earnings met analysts’ estimates and it would cut 6% of its worldwide work force, or 430 jobs, amid stiffer competition.

Profit, excluding a write-off for research and development, was $40 million, or 16 cents a share, from $39.5 million, or 16 cents, in the year-earlier period. Analysts expected 17 cents. Revenue rose 40% to $364.2 million from $260.6 million.

* Sunnyvale-based Infoseek Corp. said its fiscal first-quarter loss, excluding charges, widened less than expected to $18.2 million, or 39 cents a share, in the quarter ended Jan. 2, from $4.6 million, or 17 cents, a year earlier. Sales more than doubled to $30.2 million from $12.7 million.

MORE EARNINGS: C3

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California Earnings

A sampling of California-based companies reporting quarterly earnings Thursday, ranked by year-over-year earnings-per-share (EPS) growth, compiled by First Call:

California Companies Reporting Thursday

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Analysts’ Pct. above/ 1997 Ticker estimated Actual below 4th-qtr. Company symbol EPS EPS estimate EPS Amgen AMGN $0.84 $0.90 +7% $0.67 Bergen Brunswig BBC 0.26 0.27 +4 0.21 Safeway SWY 0.48 0.50 +4 0.43 Emulex EMLX 0.14 0.11 -21 0.15 Lam Research LRCX -0.94 -0.64 NM 0.09 Wynn’s International WN 0.36 0.34 -6 NA GeoCities GCTY -0.34 -0.27 NM NA

Year- over-year Company % change Amgen +34% Bergen Brunswig +29 Safeway +16 Emulex -27 Lam Research NM Wynn’s International NA GeoCities NA

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Notes: NM = not meaningful. A loss in any period makes percentage change not calculable.

NA = not available

Year-over-year growth and percentage changes are based on earnings-per-share

figures and may differ from percentage changes based on total profit.

For more information via the Internet, check https://www.firstcall.com.