UPDATE 1-Valeant Q4 tops estimates, backs '10 profit view

* Q4 adj EPS $0.67 vs est $0.59

* Q4 revenue rises 31 pct to $240.5 mln

Feb 22 (Reuters) - Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX.N) posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by higher revenue from its specialty pharmaceutical segment, and backed its 2010 earnings view.

For the fourth quarter, the company reported a net income from continuing operations of $156.2 million, or $1.89 a share, compared with a loss from continuing operations of $150.6 million, or $1.82 per share, a year ago.

Excluding items it earned 67 cents a share, while revenue rose 31 percent to $240.5 million.

Analysts on average expected earnings of 59 cents a share, excluding special items, on revenue of $221.7 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue from its specialty pharmaceutical segment rose 34 percent to $119.3 million.

For 2010, the company reaffirmed its adjusted earnings outlook of $2.45 to $2.70 a share.

Shares of the company closed at $36.97 Friday on the New York Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Krishnakali Sengupta in Bangalore; Editing by Aradhana Aravindan)