Amylin trims losses in Q4, full-year results

SAN DIEGO — Amylin Pharmaceuticals continued to experience losses in sales and profits during fourth quarter 2010 and for the year as a whole, but losses were lower than in 2009, according to financial results released by the drug maker Wednesday.

The company reported revenues of $174.2 million for the quarter and $668.8 million for the year. This compared with $185.5 million in fourth quarter 2009 and $758.4 million for 2009 as a whole. This translated into $11.9 million in losses for fourth quarter 2010 and $135.5 million for 2010, compared with $44.7 million in losses for fourth quarter 2009 and $169.3 million for 2009 as a whole.

Better news came for the company’s individual products. Amylin received a $10 million milestone payment from Eli Lilly in connection with the launch in Japan of the diabetes drug Byetta (exenatide), which the two market under a collaborative agreement.

Lilly also received approval of Byetta in Canada, while a retrospective clinical study found that the drug outperformed most other treatments in patients with Type 2 diabetes. The Food and Drug Administration also approved the design of a clinical trial of Bydureon, a long-acting version of Byetta.

In addition, the company plans to complete its submission of a regulatory approval application for the biotech drug metreleptin in patients with diabetes and hypertriglyceridemia by the end of the year.