Hospira reports boost in Q3

LAKE FOREST, Ill. An increase in specialty drugs, particularly a chemotherapy drug, caused Hospira’s third quarter 2009 profits to increase by 18.5% over third quarter 2008, the generic drug maker announced Tuesday.

Hospira posted profits of $395.6 million, compared with $333.8 million the year before, driven primarily by the launch of the drug oxaliplatin in the United States, as well as other specialty drugs, drugs prescribed by specialist doctors.

“Hospira delivered strong results in the third quarter, aided by the launch of generic oncolytic oxaliplatin and additional progress toward our Project Fuel initiatives,” CEO Christopher Begley said in a statement. “We continued to position Hospira for future success in this milestone quarter, during which we surpassed the billion-dollar revenue mark for the first time and generated strong double-digit earnings per share growth.”