yahoo Friday April 20, 8:14 am ET Pfizer 1st-Quarter Profit Falls 18 Percent on 1-Time Charges, Weak Sales of Exubera NEW YORK (AP) -- Pfizer Inc., the world's largest drug maker, said Friday its profit fell 18 percent in the first quarter, hurt by one-time charges and disappointing sales of diabetes drug Exubera. Adjusted results beat Wall Street expectations by a wide margin. Net income grew to $3.39 billion, or 48 cents per share, from $4.11 billion, or 56 cents per share, a year ago. Excluding one-time items, the company reported adjusted profit of $4.8 billion, or 68 cents per share, up from $4.35 billion, or 59 cents per share, last year. Revenue rose 6 percent to $12.47 billion from $11.75 billion last year, as sales of the company's best selling drug, cholesterol reducer Lipitor, grew 8 percent to $3.36 billion. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected earnings per share, excluding charges and gains, of 57 cents on revenue of $11.77 billion. "With regard to our near-term performance, apart from the impact of losing U.S. exclusivity for Norvasc six months earlier than expected and the uncertainty created by a recent adverse lower court decision regarding Lipitor patent protection in Canada, Pfizer's projected overall performance for 2007 and 2008 remains on track," said Jeffrey Kindler, chairman and chief executive officer.