Amgen Inc., the world’s largest biotechnology company, said fourth-quarter profit rose 9.8 percent on rising sales of its top two drugs, Neulasta and Enbrel, and lowered expenses for research and taxes.

Net income rose to $1.02 billion, or $1.08 a share, from $931 million, or 92 cents a share, a year ago, the Thousand Oaks, California-based company said in a statement. Excluding certain costs, earnings of $1.17 per share beat the $1.11 average estimate of 23 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Amgen forecast 2011 earnings, excluding some items, of $5 a share to $5.20 a share, compared with $5.21 for 2010. Amgen said Monday it will acquire Biovex, a closely held developer of experimental cancer drugs based in Woburn, Massachusetts, for as much as $1 billion. That purchase is among the reasons 2011 earnings are expected to be little changed, said Eric Schmidt, a Cowen & Co. analyst in New York. 

(Bloomberg)