Lilly posts loss on charges for Zyprexa probes

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Eli Lilly and Co posted a third-quarter loss on Thursday as it booked $1.48 billion in charges for probes of its Zyprexa schizophrenia treatment, but sales topped Wall Street expectations on double-digit gains for many of its biggest drugs.

The suburban Chicago drugmaker said it lost $466 million, or 43 cents per share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $926 million, or 85 cents per share.

Excluding special items, earnings rose 14 percent to $1.04 per share. Analysts on average expected $1.02, according to Reuters Estimates.

Quarterly sales rose 14 percent to $5.21 billion, topping the Reuters Estimates forecast of $5.09 billion.

Strong sales gains were seen for the company's treatments for depression, cancer, diabetes and impotence. But global Zyprexa sales rose only 2 percent to $1.19 billion, despite higher U.S. prices, amid continuing concerns that the drug causes weight gains that can increase the risk of developing diabetes.

Lilly is attempting to settle a federal probe into allegedly improper marketing of Zyprexa. Separately, it has settled another investigation initiated by various states.

The company hopes to become a bigger player in oncology by completing its planned $6.5 billion purchase of Imclone Systems Inc later this year or in early 2009, and selling the biotechnology company's Erbitux colon cancer drug in partnership with Bristol-Myers Squibb Co .

Indianapolis-based Lilly also hopes to soon begin selling the most important of its experimental medicines, a blood clot preventer called prasugrel whose approval has been delayed as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration twice cited the need for more time to review the potential blockbuster pill.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)