UPDATE 2-Lundbeck Q2 profits up, sticks to 2009 guidance

* Q2 EBIT rises to 719 mln DKK, below forecast of 748 mln

* Company sticks to 2009 guidance

* Says key products gaining market share

(Adds details, quotes, share price)

By John Acher and Karin Jensen

COPENHAGEN, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Danish drugmaker H. Lundbeck
(LUN.CO) reported a slightly smaller-than-expected rise in
operating profits for the second quarter on Thursday and stuck
to its full-year 2009 earnings and revenue guidance.

Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose to 719 million
Danish crowns ($136.4 million) in April-June from 365 million in
the same quarter last year.

The result missed an average forecast of 748 million in a
Reuters poll of 10 analysts whose EBIT estimates ranged from 563
million to 858 million crowns.

Lundbeck shares erased early gains and dipped 0.2 percent to
107.50 crowns by 0818 GMT, valuing the company at about $4
billion.

Jyske Bank analyst Frank Horning Andersen said the report
overall was roughly in line with expectations, with revenues
above forecasts due mainly to sales of the group's Cipralex
antidepressant and Ebixa drug for Alzheimer's disease.

"EBIT came out lower than expected, and that was mainly due
to higher production costs at (the U.S. unit) Lundbeck Inc
because of the accounting methods they have used to start up
with," he said.

Lundbeck Inc, formerly Ovation Pharmaceuticals, acquired in
March, contributed for the first time for a full quarter.

"With our achievements in the first half of the year, we are
now well under way to deliver on our financial expectations for
2009," Chief Executive Ulf Wiinberg said in the statement.

Lundbeck maintained its guidance for full-year 2009 EBIT of
2.8 billion to 3.0 billion crowns, EBITDA of 3.5 billion to 3.7
billion and revenues of between 13.1 billion and 13.6 billion
crowns.

"As communicated in July, in connection with the takeover of
LifeHealth, Lundbeck anticipates EBITDA to be in the high end of
the guidance range," the company said.

The report followed generally buoyant results from global
pharmaceuticals rivals, reflecting the resilient demand for
drugs during the economic downturn.

REVENUES BEAT FORECASTS

Second-quarter revenues grew 17 percent year-on-year to 3.43
billion crowns, above analysts' estimates, which had ranged from
3.20 billion to 3.42 billion crowns.

Lundbeck gets most of its revenue from Cipralex, an
antidepressant sold in the United States as Lexapro. The patents
on Cipralex expire in major markets in 2012 to 2014, so the
company has been scrambling to replace it with new products.

"Key products Cipralex, Ebixa and Azilect all experienced
double-digit growth in constant exchange rates and continue to
gain market shares," Lundbeck said.

Cipralex sales grew in the second quarter by 9 percent in
crowns and by 12 percent at constant exchange rates to 1.35
billion crowns, making up 39 percent of total revenues.

Lundbeck said that final U.S. approval of its Sabril drug
for treatment of seizures and spasms was expected within months,
but Chief Financial Officer Anders Gotzsche told Reuters
approval could come at any moment.

Gotzsche also said that integration of Lundbeck Inc was
progressing very well.

Lundbeck also repeated its guidance for R&D expenditure to
reach 23-24 percent of revenues this year, but said its tax rate
for the full-year 2009 would be 25-26 percent instead of an
earlier expectation of about 28 percent.

It said it also expected the tax rate to stay at 25-26
percent in 2010.
(Additional reporting by Teis Jensen and Peter Levring)
(Reporting by John Acher; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter and
Rupert Winchester)