Gen-Probe 1st-quarter Profit Falls 19 Percent

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Diagnostic test maker Gen-Probe Inc. said Thursday its first-quarter profit fell 19 percent on lower royalty and license revenue as costs rose.

Gen-Probe said it earned $25.7 million, or 48 cents per share, compared with net income of $31.9 million, or 58 cents per share, a year earlier. Its revenue fell 5 percent, to $116.2 million from $122.6 million.

Excluding charges, the company said it earned 51 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected profit of 46 cents per share on revenue of $115.6 million.

Royalty and license revenue, though, plunged to $2 million from $18.6 million. In the prior year period, the company received its third and final payment due in connection with the 2006 settlement of a patent dispute with Bayer.

Operating expenses rose 5 percent to $83.2 million.

The company updated its 2009 guidance. It now expects a profit between $1.85 and $2 per share, excluding acquisition charges, on revenue between $490 million and $510 million.

It previously forecast profit between $1.80 to $2.05 per share on revenue between $460 million and $490 million. The prior guidance did not include charges for the buyout of Tepnel.

Analysts expect profit of $1.94 per share on revenue $488.3 million.

Shares declined 6 cents to $48.10 in after-hours trading, after gaining 87 cents to $48.16 in the regular session.