Northern Ireland pharmaceutical maker Galen Holdings delivered a forecast-beating 35 per cent rise in first-quarter earnings today and said it was in a strong position to continue growing.
The firm - which specialises in women's health, skincare and urology - said earnings per share (EPS), excluding goodwill, rose to 12.7 cents in the three months to December 31th.
Product revenues jumped 25 per cent to $68.6 million, driven by strong demand for Ovcon contraceptive pills, Estrace hormone-replacement cream and Doryx for acne.
Analyst forecasts had ranged from 9.7-11 cents for EPS and $60 million to $65 million for revenues.
Shares in the company jumped 30 cent to €6.10 in Dublin after the results, valuing the company at $1.22 billion.
Chief Executive Mr Roger Boissonneault said Femring, a slow-release intravaginal hormone replacement treatment, would be the firm's top product when launched in the key US market, with the potential to make $50 million of sales in three years.
Analysts agreed, saying recent studies showing a link between hormone replacement therapies and cancer could increase interest in low-dose treatments like Femring.
"There's now scope for Femring to surprise on the upside," said Mr James Culverwell, an industry analyst at Merrill Lynch.
"These are good figures. They're ahead of our forecasts on the revenue, operating profit and EPS levels," said Mr Jack Gorman, an industry analyst at Davy Stockbrokers.