Abbott Laboratories Inc reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings on cost controls, but sales came in slightly below Wall Street expectations.

The company on Wednesday said it earned $375 million, or 24 cents per share in the first quarter. That compared with $544m, or 34 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter, when Abbott took charges for licensing and acquisitions.

Excluding special charges, Abbott earned 41 cents per share. Analysts, on average, were expecting 36 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Wells Fargo analyst Larry Biegelsen said operating expenses of $2 billion in the quarter were $100m below his forecasts, and bolstered results.