Abbott Laboratories Profit Drops 19%

Abbott Laboratories said fourth-quarter net income fell 19% as the maker of drugs and medical tests had expenses related to its acquisitions of Vysis Inc. and BASF’s Knoll drug unit.

Net income fell to $613.6 million, or 39 cents a share, from $753.4 million, or 48 cents, a year earlier. Sales rose 20% to $4.45 billion as Abbott sold more of its Kaletra AIDS drug, Flomax for prostate enlargement and other medicines.

Shares of Abbott, based in Abbott Park, Ill., rose 67 cents to $56.44 on the NYSE.