Celgene profit soars as drug sales rise

BOSTON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Celgene Corp. (CELG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday third-quarter earnings rose on increased sales of its cancer drugs.

Net income rose to $20.4 million, or 5 cents a share, including share-based compensation expenses, compared with $668,000, or break-even on a per-share basis, a year ago.

Revenue rose 89 percent to $244.8 million, driven by sales of its blood cancer drugs Revlimid and Thalomid.

Excluding one-time items, the company earned 15 cents a share. On that basis, analysts expected, on average, 14 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.