CHIR, QLT beat Street estimates

Both Chiron (CHIR) and QLT (TSE:QLT; QLTI) beat their first quarter consensus EPS estimates, with CHIR beating the Street by $0.02 and QLTI by C$0.05.

CHIR posted EPS of $0.19, driven by strong sales, which came in at $88 million, up 82 percent from $48 million in the first quarter last year. The company sold $33 million worth of TOBI tobramycin for Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infections, which CHIR obtained through its 2000 acquisition of PathoGenesis. CHIR, which reported earnings post-market, reaffirmed its 2001 EPS estimate of $0.85. CHIR added $0.97 to $43.79 on 2.7 million shares on Wednesday. ...