Health Stocks in Motion

Updated from 3:01 p.m.

Shares of Adolor(ADLR Quote) were among the best-performing health-related stocks Tuesday, rising 16.2% after the company and its partner GlaxoSmithKline(GSK Quote) announced that their Entereg drug showed positive results in a phase II study.

The drug is used by patients who suffer from bowel dysfunction caused by the extended use of drugs aimed to help sufferers of chronic pain. The drug helped increase the frequency of bowel movements, and showed better straining and stool consistency when compared with a placebo. "We are delighted that the results of this study suggest that patients taking opioids such as morphine or codeine may benefit from use on Entereg and believe that the convenience of oral dosing is optimal for development in this patient population," Adolor said. Shares traded up $1.43 to $10.25.

Bentley Pharmaceuticals(BNT Quote) fell 7% after the company posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings on sales that fell short of expectations. The drug delivery company posted earnings of $1.98 million, or 9 cents a share, on sales of $19.5 million. Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call were expecting earnings of 8 cents a share on sales of $23 million. A year ago the company earned $1.7 million, or 8 cents a share, on sales of $18.1 million. Shares traded down 68 cents to $9.05.

Shares of Alliance Imaging(AIQ Quote) fell 3.3% after the provider of diagnostic imaging services posted fourth-quarter earnings that matched expectations. Excluding items, the company earned 9 cents a share on sales of $107.2 million. Analysts were expecting earnings of 9 cents a share. A year ago the company earned 10 cents a share on sales of $101.6 million. For all of 2004, the company earned 49 cents a share, down from 56 cents a year ago, on sales of $432.1 million, which was up from last year's $415.3 million. Shares traded down 38 cents to $11.33.