New York, Feb 2 (AP) Pfizer swing to a small profit in the fourth-quarter as rising medicine sales helped offset big increases in spending on research and production, but it still missed Wall Street expectations.

The New York drugmaker, the first company to get US emergency use authorization for a COVID-19 vaccine, reported fourth-quarter net income of USD 594 million, or 10 cents per share. A year earlier, Pfizer posted a loss of USD 337 million, or 6 cents per share, mainly due to a big writedown on the value of eczema drug Eucrisa.

Excluding one-time items, adjusted earnings came to 42 cents per share, or 4 cents shy of Wall Street projections, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.

The maker of the world's top-selling vaccine, Prevnar 13 for preventing pneumonia and related bacterial diseases, reported revenue of USD 11.68 billion, up 12 per cent from 2019's fourth quarter. That beat Wall Street forecasts for USD 11.01 billion.

Pfizer said it expects full-year earnings in the range of USD 3.10 to USD 3.20 per share, with revenue in the range of USD 59.4 billion to USD 61.4 billion.

Shares are essentially flat before the opening bell. (AP)

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