By Kamal Choudhury and Christy Santhosh
April 29 (Reuters) – AbbVie on Wednesday reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue and profit, fueled by demand for newer immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq, as it continues to move beyond former top-selling treatment Humira.
The company has been leaning heavily on Skyrizi and Rinvoq to fill the void left by Humira, which lost U.S. patent exclusivity in 2023 and has since faced a wave of cheaper biosimilar competition.
Skyrizi recorded sales of $4.48 billion for the first quarter, growing 30.9% from a year earlier and beating Wall Street estimates of $4.41 billion, according to LSEG data. Rinvoq sales grew 23.3% to $2.12 billion, also topping estimates of $2.04 billion.
Shares of AbbVie climbed 2% in premarket trading. Citi analyst Geoff Meacham said Skyrizi’s strength this quarter despite competition and growth from Johnson & Johnson’s Tremfya, supports the view that the broader drug class is expanding.
Earlier this month, J&J beat first-quarter profit expectations on the back of strong demand for Tremfya, which generated $1.6 billion in sales.
Global sales of Humira fell 38.6% to $688 million in the quarter, slightly missing analysts’ expectation of $696.5 million.
Beyond immunology, AbbVie’s neuroscience portfolio emerged as a standout performer, with revenue surging 26% to $2.88 billion. Its Global Botox Therapeutic crossed the $1 billion quarterly mark for the first time, which was also ahead of expectations of $996.5 million.
On an adjusted basis, the company earned $2.65 per share for the quarter ended March 31, above analysts’ expectations of $2.59 per share.
Quarterly revenue came in at $15 billion, compared to analysts’ estimate of $14.72 billion.
AbbVie also raised its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to a range of $14.08 to $14.28 per share from $13.96 to $14.16. The forecast includes a 41-cent-per-share hit from acquired in-process R&D and milestone expenses booked through the first quarter.
(Reporting by Kamal Choudhury and Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
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