Questcor Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (QCOR)

[MiamiGent]

QCOR Questcor Profit Surges On Continued Sales Growth
PROVIDED BY Dow Jones & Company, Inc. - 5:19 PM 04/24/2012
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

http://stockcharts.com/h-sc/ui?s=QCOR

Questcor Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s (QCOR) first-quarter profit more than tripled as the specialty drug maker continued to ship more of its sole drug, Acthar.

Shares still fell 3% to $40.37 after hours as investors appeared to react negatively to the company's latest volume data.

Questcor's earnings have surged in recent quarters as the drug maker expands its base of patients taking Acthar--the company's only product--which is used to treat the effects of multiple sclerosis and nephrotic syndrome, among other disorders. The company's stock price often swings depending on the amount of Acthar it ships.

The company shipped 4,111 vials of Acthar in the latest quarter, up from 2,010 vials a year earlier. Questcor said its channel inventory at the end of the latest quarter appeared higher than it did at the end of the fourth quarter.

Questcor reported a profit of $38.6 million, or 58 cents a share, up from $ 11.5 million, or 17 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding stock-based compensation and other adjustments, earnings rose to 61 cents from 20 cents as net sales more than doubled to $96 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a 52-cent per-share profit with $ 90 million of revenue.

-By Drew FitzGerald, Dow Jones Newswires