Roche raises guidance even after weak dollar weighs on sales

FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Swiss drugmaker Roche on Thursday lifted its full-year profit guidance, even after nine-month sales were burdened by foreign exchange effects to come in below expectations. In a statement, the group said it projected a gain in adjusted earnings per share in the "high single to low double digit" percentage range. The was up from a previous guidance for the figures to grow by a "high single digit" percentage. It confirmed its outlook for mid single-digit sales growth. The brighter earnings prospects, albeit excluding the foreign-exchange burden, could provide a tailwind for CEO Thomas Schinecker as he invests heavily in obesity drugs to challenge the two dominant makers of weight-loss drugs, Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly. Group revenues during the January-to-September period were up 2% in non-adjusted terms at 45.9 billion Swiss francs ($57.87 billion), below forecasts cited by analysts for about 46.2-46.4 billion francs. ($1 = 0.7931 Swiss francs) (Reporting by Ludwig Burger, Editing by Miranda Murray)

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