Charles River 3Q reflects drug R&D market
quarter of 2004 reflected the current market climate for products
and services that support the drug discovery and development
process, with notable increases in operating income and earnings
per share.
The company's net sales of $176.0 million (€138 million) were a 16.4 per cent increase over the $151.2 million reported in the third quarter of 2003. In addition, net income for the third quarter of 2004 increased 31.8 per cent to $25.8 million, or $0.51 per diluted share, from $19.6 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2003.
Increased sales in both the Research Models and Services segment and the Development and Safety Testing segment led to an operating income of $43.4 million, a rise of 26.6 per cent from $34.3 million in the third quarter of last year.
According to the company, performance was due to the increase in spending by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and by academic research institutions.
Charles River Labs' results follow October's merger with Inveresk Research Group, part of a strategy to diversify outside its core focus of lab animals and switch to provide a broader range of products and services to support the drug development process from discovery to the clinic.
The company's business strategy also extends towards drug safety testing in which they have become a provider of Phase I-IV clinical development services, and of bio safety testing.
The merger has resulted in the formation of three business segments. The first of these is Research Models and Services, which supplies laboratory animal models for use in discovery research and the development and testing of new pharmaceuticals. The animals include disease-specific and consomic rat models.
Third quarter 2004 net sales for the RMS segment of the business were $111.9 million compared to $99.1 million last year, an increase of 12.9 per cent.
Charles River's other two segments include its preclinical and clinical services providing in vitro technologies such as protein chemistry, analytical services, stability programs and biosafety testing.
Net sales for this Development and Safety Testing (DST) segment rose 23.1 per cent in the third quarter, to $64.2 million from $52.1 million in the same period last year.
