UPDATE 3-Biovail profit dips but hunt for deals continues

* EPS $0.25 vs $0.31

* Revenue up 17 pct at $212.5 mln

* Says a number of deals in works

* Shares off 1.3 percent at C$13.95 (Adds analyst and company quotes. In U.S. dollars)

By Scott Anderson

TORONTO, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Biovail Corp (BVF.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) (BVF.N: Quote, Profile, Research) reported a lower quarterly profit on Thursday, hurt by research and development costs and restructuring charges.

But Canada's biggest publicly traded pharmaceutical company said that would not slow its hunt for acquisitions as it continues its efforts to transform itself into a company focused on treatments for central nervous system disorders.

Since announcing the new focus last year, Biovail has struck five acquisition deals and said on Thursday that it is eyeing another 10 to 20 deals of varying sizes and shapes as it sits on a war chest of about $500 million.

Chief Executive Bill Wells said the deals would most likely focus on products that are in the market or close to market, giving the company quicker access to revenue and cash flow than if it waited for drugs to develop in its own pipeline.