Humira helps Abbott Labs beat estimates for 2Q

The earnings boost came in part from surging international business, with non-U.S. pharmaceutical sales rising more than 25 percent and diagnostic sales up nearly 20 percent.

Sales were led by the company's blockbuster arthritis medication Humira, which posted revenue of over $1 billion, up 48 percent from last year. Abbott raised full-year sales expectations for the drug, which is also used to treat autoimmune disorders, to $4.3 billion.

The company also posted double-digit growth for its cholesterol pill Niaspan and HIV therapy Kaletra.

Based on the strong performance, Abbott upped its full-year 2008 guidance to between $3.24 and $3.28 from $3.20 to $3.25.

Goldman Sachs analyst Lawrence Keusch said that estimate may still be on the conservative side, noting earnings potential of Abbott's recently approved drug-coated stent, Xience V. Stents are mesh-wire tubes that prop open coronary arteries after surgery to remove fatty plaque.

"With the launch of the Xience V now under way and Humira growth remaining strong on a global basis, we believe that the second half should continue to show strong results," Keusch wrote in a note to clients.

Abbott executives highlighted the earnings potential of the artery-opening Xience device, which has shown superior safety results compared with products from rivals, including Boston Scientific Corp., Johnson & Johnson and Medtronic Inc..

The company estimates sales for its stent division will double in the third quarter to between $225 and $250 million, above what some analysts expected.

"Based on the attributes of the product and the way the launch has gone, while it's still early, after the first two weeks we feel confident we can reach that target range," said John Thomas, vice president of investor relations.

For the quarter ended June 30, the suburban Chicago company said profit rose to $1.32 billion, or 85 cents per share, up from $988.7 million, or 63 cents per share, in the same period last year.

Excluding one-time items, earnings totaled $1.31 billion, or 84 cents per share.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial, on average, expected second-quarter profit of 79 cents per share on $7.23 billion in revenue.

Abbott's diverse product offerings--which range from blood tests to biotech drugs--have helped it avoid problems faced by competitors that only market pharmaceuticals. Pfizer Inc. and other drugmakers are increasingly losing sales to generic competition as patents on their blockbuster drugs expire.

Abbott's total sales for the quarter increased nearly 15 percent to $7.3 billion, aided by favorable currency exchange rates due to the weak dollar. Health care giant Johnson & Johnson reported Tuesday almost two-thirds of its increased sales for the last quarter came from favorable currency rates.

Abbott's performance also benefited from the end of its joint venture with Japanese drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. In April the companies divided their 31-year-old joint venture TAP Pharmaceutical Products. Abbott received rights to the cancer drug Lupron and a guarantee of cash payments from Takeda over the next five years.

Shares of Abbott fell 88 cents to $56.97 Tuesday.