Sanofi 2Q Net Profit Down 10% at EUR1.04 Billion

French drugmaker Sanofi (SAN.FR) said net profit fell in the second quarter as it was hit by higher restructuring costs, but lifted its earnings guidance for 2017.

On Monday, the Paris-based drugmaker said net profit declined by 10% to 1.04 billion euros ($1.22 billion) from EUR1.16 billion a year earlier.

Business net income, the company's term for adjusted income excluding the impact of acquisitions and divestments, increased 1% to EUR1.7 billion, lifted by Genzyme, Sanofi's biotech business. That beat analysts' expectations of EUR1.6 billion, according to a poll by data provider FactSet. Total sales rose 6% to EUR8.66 billion.

Sanofi said it now expected business earnings per share--excluding the impact of acquisitions and divestments--to remain stable in 2017 at constant exchange rates. The company said earlier it expected business earnings per share to be stable or decline by up to 3% in 2017.

Sanofi has been struggling with dwindling sales of its blockbuster insulin drug Lantus since it went off patent in the U.S.

To revive growth, Sanofi has boosted its research and is seeking to acquire an innovative pharmaceutical company that could replenish its new drug pipeline. It lost out to Pfizer Inc. (PFE) in a bidding war for cancer drug maker Medivation in August. Late last year, talks with Actelion Ltd. (ATLN.EB) collapsed after the French major and the Swiss biotech failed to hash out an agreement. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) agreed to take over Actelion for $30 billion in January.

In January, Sanofi exchanged its animal-health business for most of Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH's consumer health-care business. Boehringer also paid Sanofi EUR4.7 billion as part of the deal.

-- Write to Noemie Bisserbe at noemie.bisserbe@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 31, 2017 01:45 ET (05:45 GMT)