AMGEN REPORTS HEALTHY NUMBERS.

Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer

THOUSAND OAKS - Amgen Inc. on Wednesday beat third-quarter earnings expectations and raised its target for the full year.

The biotech giant saw total sales of $2.7 billion, up from $2.2 billion a year ago. It took a hefty $554 million charge this quarter for its Tularik Inc. acquisition, but still saw $236 million in profits, 18 cents per share. Without that and other one-time expenses, third-quarter earnings would have been $839 million, 64 cents per share, up from $612 million, 46 cents a share, in the same period last year. Analysts polled by Thomson First Call expected earnings of 62 cents per share.

Based on the news, Amgen upped its full year earnings per share guidance range to $2.38 to $2.43 from the original range of $2.30 to $2.40.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Kevin Sharer pointed to recent approvals for Enbrel, its anti-inflammatory drug, and a legal victory last week in a long-running patent-infringement case as highlights of the quarter.

``We had excellent growth during the third quarter, made clinical and regulatory progress and gained a significant victory toward protecting our intellectual property,'' he said in a conference call with analysts.

Anemia fighters Aranesp and Epogen accounted for the biggest chunk of sales, combining for $1.3 billion in revenue. Though overall sales of Aranesp climbed 39 percent, to $609 million, the company acknowledged that its U.S. sales were constrained by higher-than expected discounts.

``I think there was a slight hiccup in Aranesp due to discounting, so its sales were lower than what I was expecting,'' said Sena Lund, a senior analyst with New York investment bank Cathay Financial LLC. ``But from what management presented, it should be a smooth ride going forward.''

Brent Hopkins, [phone]

brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com