Impotence drug Cialis sales gain lifts Icos to profit

Icos chief executive Paul Clark told investors two years ago that Cialis would be a "big winner" and drive the company into the black by mid-2006. The company later backed off from that prediction, but Thursday it said growing sales nudged it into profitable territory after all.

The Bothell biotech company said after markets closed that it eked out a $6.1 million profit in the second quarter, after splitting revenues and expenses with partner Eli Lilly. It is Icos' first quarterly profit when stock-option expenses are counted, as is now required.

The impotence drug was approved for sale in the United States in November 2003. Icos logged one profitable quarter in 2005, before expensing stock options became mandatory.

With $233 million in worldwide Cialis sales in the second quarter, a 22 percent increase over the same time a year ago, Icos said it now expects to make an annual profit of $6 million to $15 million in 2006, instead of a $5 million loss. Worldwide Cialis sales for this year had been projected at $860 million to $900 million, but Thursday the company ratcheted that projection up to between $920 million and $950 million.

Clark said the company expects Cialis to "comfortably" crack the $1 billion mark in worldwide sales in 2007.

Icos managers spent much of their conference call yesterday telling investors about plans to fully exploit Cialis, and no time on other drugs which could emerge from its research and development.

Chief medical officer David Goodkin said a low-dose, once-daily formulation of Cialis was shown safe and effective in clinical trials of 850 men, and more trials are under way or planned concerning high blood pressure and pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Marketing chief Leonard Blum said Cialis had 26.1 percent share of the U.S. impotence drug market in June, and the overall impotence drug market has started growing again after last year's scare over suspected links to blindness.

Clark said Thursday he's "thrilled" with the performance. But Icos shareholders, whose stock has lost 18 percent year-to-date, mostly are not.

Two years ago, Clark said Viagra was "a habit whose time has passed." Last month, Pfizer said Viagra remained the No. 1 impotence drug, with $394 million in worldwide second-quarter sales.

Icos shares were unchanged in after-hours trading, closing at $22.77 share.

Luke Timmerman: 206-515-5644 or ltimmerman@seattletimes.com