ICN Says Viratek Inc. Will Report Record Earnings

Crediting strong domestic sales of Virazole, an anti-viral drug approved in December for fighting a sometimes-fatal infant respiratory disease, ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc., said Wednesday that its Viratek Inc. subsidiary will report record net earnings of an estimated $1.5 million for the quarter ended Feb. 28.

The projected first-quarter 1986 earnings are in sharp contrast to a net loss of $609,000 during the like period last year. For all of 1985, Viratek’s net losses totaled $2.8 million.

ICN, which also owns a majority stake in SPI Pharmaceuticals Inc., recently began testing Virazole among 350 pre-AIDS patients across the United States to determine if the drug is effective in arresting the AIDS virus.

The tests, which will cost an estimated $10 million by the time of completion in July, are jointly sponsored by the Eastman Kodak Co. of Rochester, N.Y., which owns a 5% stake in ICN.

Earnings estimates for ICN and SPI are not available yet, said Dominic Luizzi, an ICN spokesman, but both firms are expected to report increased sales for the quarter. During the first quarter of 1985, ICN posted net earnings of $1.4 million and SPI had net earnings of $724,000.

Luizzi said the three Costa Mesa-based companies will report their earnings within about 10 days.