Excedrin Sales Up 5% Worldwide In Third Quarter, Bufferin Up 19%

Worldwide sales of Bristol-Myers Squibb's Excedrin increased 5% to $61 mil. in the third quarter. In the U.S., Excedrin sales were up 7% to $59 mil., while international revenues dropped 33% to $2 mil.

Through nine months, Excedrin sales in both the U.S. and overseas were flat, totaling $165 mil. and $8 mil., respectively.

Bufferin sales were level in the U.S. in the third quarter at $4 mil., while international sales rose 22% to $28 mil., bringing worldwide sales to $32 mil., up 19%. Nine-month sales of the brand were $97 mil. worldwide; international sales were up 18% to $86 mil. but, in the U.S., volume fell 8% to $11 mil.

Three analgesics brands sold only overseas all were ahead in the quarter - Efferalgan, 3% to $33 mil., Dafalgan, 7% to $16 mil., and Aspirine UPSA, 67% to $10 mil. Sales for all three brands were up in the nine months as well.

Consumer medicines had a "solid quarter," BMS Chief Financial Officer Michael Mee concluded during an Oct. 20 teleconference.

Worldwide medicines sales, including pharmaceuticals and consumer medicines, rose 14% in the third quarter to $3.5 bil. Analgesics made up $180 mil. of the total, up more than 7%; cough and cold remedy sales totaled $26 mil., and skin care products sales were $23 mil, gaining 8% and 10%, respectively.

BMS' nutritional products category saw an increase of 6% worldwide to $466 mil., driven by a 12% growth in international sales to $178 mil. The international gains are "primarily due to growth in Asian and Latin American markets," the firm said.

"Mead Johnson continues to build on its number one infant formula share position in the U.S. and worldwide," the company said. Worldwide sales for the firm's largest selling formula, Enfamil, increased 1% in the quarter to $176 mil.

Breaking down infant formulas by type, sales for routine starter formulas were up a slight 3% in the U.S. to $148 mil., with international sales flat at $35 mil.

Specialty infant formula sales dropped 8% in the third quarter to $79 mil. Hindered by a similar drop in international sales, worldwide sales were down 13% to $91 mil.

The firm saw a large increase in revenues from its adult consumer nutritionals, which include such brands as Boost, Viactiv, Choice and Nutrament, up 46% for the quarter to $38 mil., and ahead 26% to $96 mil. in the nine months.

The category as a whole was helped by increased Boost sales, which gained 38% over 1998 to reach $33 mil. Boost adult nutritional supplements come in a number of different formulas, including Boost drinks and bars, Boost Plus, Boost with Fiber, Boost High Protein and Boost Pudding.

Sales of Viactiv calcium chews reached $10 mil. in the product's third quarter on the market, up from $6 mil. in the second quarter.

Bristol's consolidated net sales were just over $5 bil. for the quarter, up 11% from a year ago, and ahead 11% to $14.8 bil. for the first nine months. Net earnings were up 14% in both the three- and nine-month periods to $1.1 bil. and $3.1 bil., respectively.

R&D expenditures increased 14% for both the quarter and the first nine months to $452 mil. and $1.3 bil., respectively. Advertising and promotions increased 3% to $573 mil. for the quarter and remained steady for the first nine months compared to the same period last year at $1.8 bil.

Novartis reported its OTC unit achieved "strong performance...due to the marked sales expansion of the cough and cold brands, particularly Triaminic and the successful switch of Lamisil cream (athlete's foot) to [OTC] availability in the U.S." Rx-to-OTC switches contributed more than 1% to the division's sales growth, Novartis said.

The Medical Nutrition division exhibited "strong sales growth in all segments, with a 30% increase over last year in Europe."

Novartis' Consumer Health "posted dynamic growth" in the third quarter with an increase in sales of 10% in Swiss francs over the same period in 1998 (8% in local currencies) to CHF 1.3 bil. (about $872 mil., based on an exchange rate of U.S. $1 = CHF 1.49).