Wednesday, December 27, 2023, Bristol Myers Squibb Research and Development Center, Cambridge Crossing, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
Adam Glanzman | Bloomberg | getty images
Bristol Myers Squibb On Thursday, it reported third-quarter earnings and revenue that beat Wall Street expectations, thanks to its blockbuster blood thinner Eliquis and a portfolio of drugs expected to deliver long-term growth.
The pharmaceutical industry also raised its annual sales guidance for this year, expecting sales to increase by more than 5%. Bristol Myers previously said it expected sales to increase in the “upper” low single-digit range.
The company also raised its 2024 adjusted earnings guidance to 75 to 95 cents per share, up from its previous forecast of 60 to 90 cents per share.
The results come as Bristol Myers plans to cut costs by $1.5 billion by 2025 and invest the money into leading pharmaceutical brands and research and development programs. The company said in April that it would lay off more than 2,000 employees, eliminate some drug programs and consolidate operations, among other efforts.
Below is a comparison of what Bristol Myers reported for the third quarter and what Wall Street expected, based on LSEG’s analyst survey.
- Earnings per share: $1.80 adjustment vs. $1.49 expected
- revenue: $11.89 billion vs. Expected $11.28 billion
Bristol Myers reported net income of $1.21 billion, or 60 cents per share, in the third quarter. This compares to net income of $1.93 billion, or 93 cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding certain items, the company reported adjusted earnings per share for the quarter of $1.80.
The pharmaceutical giant’s revenue rose 8% to $11.89 billion from the same period a year ago.
The increase comes from the company’s so-called “growth portfolio,” which includes cancer drugs Eliquis and Opdivo. However, sales were partially offset by leukemia treatment Sprycel, which faced generic competition due to loss of exclusivity.
The company is preparing to make up for the loss in sales of leading treatments that are scheduled to lose market exclusivity, such as Eliquis, Opdivo, and blood cancer treatment Revlimid.
Sales of Eliquis could also take a hit in 2026, when new drug prices go into effect for certain Medicare patients under negotiations with the federal government. The first round of price negotiations, a key provision of President Joe Biden’s inflation reduction law, concluded over the summer.
Notably, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Bristol Myers Squibb’s highly anticipated schizophrenia drug Cobenfy during the quarter. This is the first new type of treatment for a debilitating chronic mental disorder in more than 70 years.
Eliquis, a new drug after growth
Eliquis reported $3 billion in revenue this quarter, up 11% year-over-year. That’s higher than the $2.84 billion analysts had expected, according to estimates compiled by StreetAccount.
Blood thinners shared by Bristol Myers PfizerIt is expected to lose market exclusivity by 2028.
Revlimid reported revenue of $1.41 billion, down 1% year-over-year. That surpassed analysts’ revenue expectations of $1.11 billion for the treatment, according to StreetAccount.
The company’s growth portfolio revenue increased 18% year over year to $5.8 billion in the third quarter.
This is partly due to increased demand for its anemia treatment Reblozyl, which generated $447 million in sales in the third quarter. This is an 80% increase compared to the same period last year. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected the treatment to generate $435 million in revenue.
Advanced melanoma treatment Opdualag, lymphoma treatment Breyanzi and certain heart disease treatment Camzyos also helped drive returns from its growth portfolio during the third quarter, according to the company.
According to StreetAccount, Breyanzi and Camzyos posted sales that were higher than analysts expected, while Opdualag fell short of expectations.
Opdivo posted revenue of $2.36 billion in the third quarter, up 4% year-over-year. That fell short of analysts’ estimates of $2.41 billion for the quarter, StreetAccount said.
Meanwhile, Abecma, a cell therapy for a rare blood cancer called multiple myeloma, had sales of $124 million in the quarter. Analysts had expected sales of $110 million.
