Merck profit slips in Q2 on lower sales

Drugmaker Merck & Co. is reporting a 12 per cent drop in second-quarter profit due to lower sales of its cholesterol drugs and several vaccines.

The company says the strong U.S. dollar also factored into results, lowering total revenue to $5.9 billion US.

The maker of asthma and allergy treatment Singulair and cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil says its net income fell to $1.56 billion, or 74 cents per share, from $1.77 billion, or 82 cents per share.

The company says it had restructuring charges and expenses related to its acquisition of Schering-Plough Corp. that total nine cents per share.

Without that, earnings per share would have been 83 cents.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings per share of 77 cents and revenue of $5.84 billion.