Amgen Corp. (NASDAQ: AMGN) reported fiscal second quarter 2015 earnings Thursday afternoon after equity markets had closed. The biotech firm posted adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.57 on revenues of $5.37 billion. In the first quarter of 2014 the company reported EPS of $2.37 on revenues of $5.18 billion. Consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters called for EPS of $2.43 on revenues of $5.32 billion.

Product sales rose 6% compared with the second quarter of 2014 primarily on the sale of the company’s ENBREL, Prolia, Sensipar, Kyprolis and XGEVA products. Growth was the result of price and higher unit demand.

R&D expenses dropped by 6% and total operating expenses fell by 1% to $2.82 billion. Amgen’s operating margin rose to 48.8% from 46.9% in the same period a year ago.

In its guidance statement Amgen increased its revenue estimate from a prior range of $20.9 to $21.3 billion for the full fiscal year to a new range of $21.1 to $21.4 billion. The adjusted EPS range rose from $9.35 to $9.65 to a new range of $9.55 to $9.80.

Analysts had consensus third-quarter estimates of $2.34 for EPS and $5.29 billion for revenues. Full-year estimates called for EPS of $9.62 and revenues of $21.17.

The company’s CEO said:

Focused execution with our growth products drove record revenues in the second quarter, and expense discipline further leveraged earnings and our ability to invest in new and forthcoming launches. Our pipeline continues to deliver, with Repatha approval in the European Union and Kyprolis approval for relapsed multiple myeloma in the United States. We are on track to deliver on our long-term objectives for patients and shareholders.

Amgen beat the consensus EPS estimate by nearly 6%.

Shares traded higher by nearly 2% in the after-hours session Tuesday at $175.00 above its 52-week range of $124.76 to $174.80. Thomson Reuters had a consensus price target on the stock of  $179.00 before today’s results were announced.

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