Bristol-Myers 4th-Quarter Net Advances 14% From a Year Ago

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., the nation’s second-largest drug company, reported higher fourth-quarter net income Thursday.

The company said it earned $583 million, or $1.13 a share, in the fourth quarter, up 14% from $510 million, or 98 cents a share, from a year earlier.

Revenue in the period rose to $2.82 billion from $2.80 billion in the fourth quarter of 1991.

“All four of the company’s core businesses--pharmaceuticals, consumer products, medical devices and nutritionals--reported sales increases during the year,” Richard Gelb, chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.

But the company also said that while international sales increased 8% in the quarter, domestic sales declined 5%.

The firm’s shares closed down $1.25 at $60.75 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.