Biotech and Pharma

Drugmaker AstraZeneca's earnings fall, hit by patent expiries

Drugmaker AstraZeneca's underlying earnings fell 12 percent in the first quarter, broadly in line with analyst expectations, hit by drug patent expiries.

Revenue at the British drug company rose 1 percent in dollar terms to $6.12 billion, helped by income from selling rights to some drugs, generating core earnings per share, which exclude certain items, of 95 cents.

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Industry analysts had on average forecast quarterly revenue of $5.93 billion and earnings of 94 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

AstraZeneca reiterated on Friday that it expects a low to mid-single-digit percentage decline in both revenue and core earnings at constant exchange rates for the full year.

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