*

Adjusted EPS $4.90 vs LSEG estimate of $4.30

*

Revenue of $8.1 billion in line with Wall Street estimates

*

FDA lifts clinical hold on AMG 513 weight-loss drug trial

By Deena Beasley

May 1 (Reuters) - Amgen ( AMGN ) on Thursday said its

first-quarter profit rose 24%, handily exceeding Wall Street

expectations, as product sales increased 11% and profit margins

widened.

The biotechnology company reported adjusted earnings per

share of $4.90 for the quarter, sailing past the average analyst

estimate of $4.30, as compiled by LSEG.

Overall revenue rose 9% to $8.1 billion, which was in line

with Wall Street estimates.

"Ongoing new product launches and successful Phase 3 trial

results for several products make us feel confident in our

long-term growth prospects," Amgen ( AMGN ) CEO Robert Bradway said in a

statement.

The company is slated to present at a medical meeting next

month full results from a mid-stage trial of its experimental

weight-loss drug MariTide, viewed by many investors as a

potential blockbuster.

Amgen ( AMGN ) is conducting late-stage trials of the drug in

patients with and without diabetes, and said results from a

Phase 2 diabetes trial will be announced in the second half of

this year.

The company also said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration

has lifted its clinical hold on an early-stage trial of a

different experimental weight-loss drug known as AMG 513.

For the full year, Amgen ( AMGN ) said it still expects adjusted

earnings per share of $20.00 to $21.20 on revenue of $34.3

billion to $35.7 billion. Analysts, on average, have estimated

earnings of $20.63 per share on revenue of $35.1 billion.

Amgen ( AMGN ) said its 2025 outlook includes the impact of

implemented tariffs, but does not account for any future levies,

including potential sector-specific tariffs.

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has opened a

national security investigation into pharmaceuticals in a bid to

demonstrate why the U.S. needs tariffs to boost domestic

manufacturing.

Amgen's ( AMGN ) first-quarter sales of bone drug Prolia rose 10% to

$1.1 billion, but the company said it expects lower sales of the

medication later in the year as biosimilar competitors are

launched.

Sales of cholesterol-lowering medication Repatha rose 27% to

$656 million, while sales of much older arthritis drug Enbrel

fell 10% to $567 million.

In the rare disease space, sales of thyroid eye disease drug

Tepezza fell 10% to $381 million, and sales of gout treatment

Krystexxa were flat at $236 million. Both drugs were acquired

with Amgen's ( AMGN ) purchase of Horizon Therapeutics.

Net operating income for the quarter rose 20% to $1.2

billion.