LONDON, July 31 (Reuters) - Shire, the London-listedpharmaceutical group being bought by Japan's Takeda,reported a 4 percent rise in second-quarter earnings as revenuerose 5 percent to $3.92 billion, just ahead of marketexpectations.
It said its outlook for the year, including its oncologyfranchise which it has separately agreed to sell, was unchanged.
Earlier on Tuesday, Takeda said its first-quarter operatingprofit had halved from a year ago, when it had booked gains fromasset sales. It is buying Shire to broaden its drugs portfolioand plug a gap in its late-stage pipeline.(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Kate Holton)