Bentley earnings top expectations

Exeter-based Bentley Pharmaceuticals posted a quarterly net income of 10 cents a diluted share, beating dampened expectations due to government regulations that lowered pricing for generic drugs in Spain, Bentley’s largest market, the company announced Tuesday.

The company doubled its net income to $2.36 million, compared to the same quarter a year ago, and topped analysts’ predictions by 3 cents a share.

Bentley actually increased generic drug sales, partly because it lowered prices a month earlier than required, enabling it to increase sales volume enough to offset the price reductions. All told, sales increased to a record $29.1 million, compared to $26.6 million for the same quarter of the previous year.

The company’s margins in the generic market have shrunk, however, and it would not have been able to increase its income, had it not been for better margins in its alternative drug delivery business.

Wall Street reacted favorably to the report, with Bentley’s stock price jumping to more than $10.50 a share, a 10 percent increase, in the hours following the earnings release. – BOB SANDERS