Alcon Inc, which makes OPTI-FREE contact lens solution, reported a 26 percent jump in second-quarter net income on July 23, driven by increased sales and foreign exchange gains. Net profit rose to $566.4 million, or $1.88 per share, from $448.4 million, or $1.48 per share, a year earlier.
Adjusting for one-time items, the company earned $1.75 per share. On that basis, the average analyst estimate was $1.74, according to Reuters Estimates.
Earlier this month, Novartis AG completed the acquisition of a 25 percent stake in Alcon. It was the first step in Novartis' agreement to acquire a majority stake in Alcon from Nestle SA. Global sales rose 18 percent to $1.7 billion. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange fluctuations, the gain was 11 percent.
"Revenues in both developed and emerging markets outside the US were particularly robust, while our advanced technology intraocular lenses and glaucoma franchise continued to deliver excellent sales growth," Chief Executive Cary Rayment said in a statement.
Citing continued foreign exchange gains, Alcon raised its full-year earnings forecast to between $6.48 and $6.54 per share from its April estimate of $6.39 to $6.49.
It also said full-year sales would range from $6.46 billion to $6.51 billion, up from its April estimate of $6.4 billion to $6.5 billion. Shares of Alcon fell 3.2 percent to close at $159.85 on the New York Stock Exchange.
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