Wilmington, N.C.-based PPD's second quarter revenues fell nearly $50 million to $355.2 million, but its earnings per share were boosted by the sale of its subsidiary, Piedmont Research Center, which was part of the company's discovery sciences segment.

Second quarter 2009 income from operations was $53.4 million, compared to $69.9 million for the same period in 2008. Second quarter 2009 diluted earnings per share were $0.49, compared to $0.41 for the same period last year. Diluted earnings per share included the after-tax gain on the sale of Piedmont Research Center of $19.4 million, or $0.16 per share.

Development segment net revenue for the second quarter of 2009 was down to $330.2 million, compared to $370.6 million for the second quarter of 2008. Development segment income from operations for the second quarter of 2009 slipped to $59.1 million, compared to $72.7 million for the second quarter of 2008.

"Even though we continued to face challenging market conditions, PPD delivered strong earnings for the quarter," said David Grange, CEO of PPD. "We remain very optimistic about the long-term prospects for the CRO industry as a whole, continue to believe we are particularly well positioned for the long term and are firmly committed to pursuing our strategic initiatives to maximize value for all our stakeholders."

Discovery sciences segment net revenue for the second quarter of 2009 was $800,000, compared to $400,000 for the second quarter of 2008. Discovery sciences segment net revenue for the second quarter of 2009 included royalties from the sale of Priligy in Europe, which marks the first quarter for receipt of royalties from the company's compound partnering business. Discovery sciences segment loss from operations for the second quarter of 2009 was $5.7 million, compared with a loss from operations of $2.8 million for the same period in 2008. The loss for the second quarter of 2009 was higher than the prior year loss due primarily to an increase in research and development expenditures from the company's dermatology business that it acquired early in the second quarter of 2009, the company said.

"With the start of Priligy royalties and the advancement of the development programs for alogliptin and our dermatology portfolio, we remain confident that our compound partnering efforts will generate long-term, sustainable growth," said Fred Eshelman, executive chairman of PPD.

Earlier this month, PPD laid off a total of 270 employees in North America, including 80 employees from its North Carolina headquarters. PPD has more than $650 million in cash and equivalents and no debt and does not plan to make additional workforce cuts.

PPD's shares were down 10% to $19.88 in after-hours trading Tuesday