Light and Shadow Quarterly for Abbott Laboratories.
The US pharmaceutical company ended the second quarter with net income down by 11% to $1.73 billion, or $1.08 per share, compared to $1.94 billion ($1.23 per share) recorded during the same period last year. Excluding special items, Abbott's EPS came in at $1.23 per share, a cent above market expectations.
Also in the quarter, sales rose 2% to $9.81 billion, broadly in line with analyst estimates.
The outlook for the full year 2012 has been confirmed: earnings per share are expected in the range of 5-5.10 dollars.
Meanwhile, on the Nyse, Abbott shares are losing 0.62% to 66.05 dollars.
July 18, 2012 
