By Mariam Sunny and Christy Santhosh
Nov 3 (Reuters) – Pfizer raised its full-year profit and revenue forecasts on Tuesday as strong demand for its recently acquired cancer drug Padcev and blockbuster blood thinner Eliquis led to higher-than-expected third-quarter results.
Pfizer is now targeting annual sales of $62 billion to $64 billion, up from the prior forecast of $60.5 billion to $62.5 billion, and earnings of $2.95 to $3.05 per share, compared with its previous outlook of $2.80 to $3.00 a share.
CEO Albert Bourla said the raised outlook reflected the strong quarterly performance as well as confidence in the company’s strategy, pipeline and long-term growth prospects.
The New York-based drugmaker has spent billions of dollars on acquisitions and licensing deals to bolster its pipeline and reassure investors about its growth prospects despite looming patent expirations and declining sales of COVID-19 products that had generated a revenue windfall during the pandemic.
The company spent $43 billion in 2023 to acquire cancer drugmaker Seagen and $10 billion for obesity drug developer Metsera last year.
Pfizer’s acquired products are increasingly contributing, but the longer-term growth story still depends on the success of experimental treatments in the pipeline, Bernstein analyst Courtney Breen said.
Among the near-term catalysts investors are watching for are late-stage data for experimental cancer drug mevrometostat and early results from Metsera’s amylin-based obesity drug.
Pfizer said late-stage data for mevrometostat, previously expected by year-end, is now anticipated in the first quarter of 2027.
Pfizer shares were down nearly 1% at $30.37 in midday trading. David Wagner, portfolio manager at Aptus Capital Advisors, said the muted market response was understandable as healthcare led broad index gains in late October, which likely left Pfizer’s beat-and-raise largely priced in.
Bourla, during a call to discuss the quarter and company outlook while US midterm elections that will decide control of Congress were underway, said he expects there will be a divided government next year, and does not see changes to drug-pricing agreements negotiated between pharmaceutical companies and the Trump administration.
Under President Donald Trump’s most-favored-nation pricing framework, drugmakers agreed to launch new medicines in the United States at prices comparable to those in other developed countries in exchange for relief from potential tariffs.
Pfizer was the first US company to sign a pricing agreement with the Trump administration.
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Separately, the drugmaker on Tuesday said it appointed Cecile Guegan as chief financial officer, effective November 1, succeeding Dave Denton, who left in August to take on a similar role with Nike.
Guegan’s appointment provides “more perceived stability ahead of decisions on setting 2027 guidance,” said BMO Capital analyst Evan Seigerman.
Sales of blood thinner Eliquis, which Pfizer shares with Bristol Myers Squibb, rose 25% to $2.52 billion, above estimates of $2.46 billion, driven by higher net price in the US, the company said.
Pfizer and Bristol had cut the price of the blood clot preventer after it was selected as one of the first 10 medicines subject to Medicare price negotiations under the Inflation Reduction Act.
The price cut allowed them to avoid penalties imposed by the US government’s Medicare health insurance program for price increases that outpace inflation.
The company reported a third-quarter adjusted profit of 87 cents per share, topping analysts’ estimates by 14 cents, according to LSEG data.
Total revenue for the quarter came in at $16.58 billion, above Wall Street estimates of $15.87 billion.
(Reporting by Christy Santhosh and Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru, Michael Erman in New Jersey; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Bill Berkrot)
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