Par sees sales gains across all sectors

WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J. — Generic drug maker Par Pharmaceutical Cos. had sales of $227 million during fourth quarter 2010 and $1 billion for the year as a whole, according to an earnings statement Thursday.

Profits were $17.5 million for the quarter and $92.7 million for the year, compared with $10.7 million in fourth quarter 2009 and $76.9 million for 2009 as a whole.

Leading products for the year included metoprolol succinate, a generic version of AstraZeneca’s high blood pressure treatment Toprol XL, which had sales of $73 million for the quarter and $473.2 million for the year; as well as sumatriptan, a generic version of GlaxoSmithKline’s migraine treatment Imitrex, which had sales of $19.9 million during the quarter and $73 million for the year as a whole.

Among branded products, the breast cancer treatment Megace ES (megestrol) had sales of $14.8 million for the quarter and $60.9 million for the year, while the vitamin B12 deficiency treatment Nascobal B12 (cyanocobalamin) nasal spray had sales of $4.8 million for the quarter and $17.7 million for the year.