FDA Still Inspecting Wyeth Plant

Wyeth(WYE) said its first-quarter earnings, excluding one-time items, should exceed the Wall Street consensus target of 85 cents a share.

The company offered no specific earnings estimate and provided no reason for its optimism. Wyeth also reaffirmed that it expects full-year earnings per share to be $3.40 to $3.50, also excluding items. The average analyst estimate recorded by Thomson First Call is $3.44.

After the markets had closed, Wyeth also said the Food and Drug Administration continues to inspect a plant in Puerto Rico relating to a warning letter that the company received from the agency in May 2006. The inspection began in January and is expected to take "at least several more weeks," the company said.

Until the FDA signs off on Wyeth's efforts to fix the problems, the agency won't allow the company to make new drugs there. Experimental drugs for depression, menopause symptoms and contraception are scheduled to be produced in Puerto Rico when the FDA approves them.

In regular trading, Wyeth's stock lost 6 cents to close at $48.94. After hours, shares gained $2.30, or 4.7%.

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