Pfizer hikes 2021 outlook after vaccine boosts sales, profit

Strong sales of its COVID-19 vaccine and other medicines helped Pfizer nearly double its second-quarter revenue and boost its profit an impressive 59 per cent, beating Wall Street expectations and leading the drug giant to sharply hike its 2021 sales and profit forecasts.

Amid the surging coronavirus pandemic, the COVID-19 vaccine became Pfizer’s top seller, bringing in US$7.84 billion from direct sales and revenue split with its partner, Germany's BioNTech.

The New York company now anticipates revenue from the vaccine this year to reach US$33.5 billion for the 2.1 billion doses it's contracted to provide by year-end. That's just US$2 billion shy of Pfizer's total revenue in the second quarter last year.

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The maker of breast cancer drug Ibrance on Wednesday reported a second-quarter net income of US$5.56 billion, or 98 cents per share, up from US$3.49 billion, or 62 cents per share.

Adjusted income, excluding one-time gains and losses, amounted to US$6.08 billion, or US$1.07 per share, well above the 97 cents that Wall Street had expected, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.

The drugmaker also beat revenue expectations, posting revenue of US$18.98 billion, up from US$9.86 billion a year earlier.

In a prepared statement, Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla called the quarter “remarkable", noting Pfizer and BioNTech have already delivered more than 1 billion doses of their COVID-19 vaccine globally. Bourla noted the rest of Pfizer's business posted sales growth of 10per cent, excluding effects of currency exchange rates.

Sales jumped by double digits for Pfizer's drugs for cancer and rare diseases, as well as its medicines primarily used in hospitals. 

Sales of Eliquis, for preventing blood clots and strokes, jumped 16per cent to US$1.48 billion, while Ibrance sales edged up 4 per cent to US$1.4 billion in the quarter. Sales of Pfizer's portfolio of sterile injectable drugs rose 12 per cent to US$1.38 billion.

Pfizer's pneumonia vaccine Prevnar 13 — until now the world's most lucrative vaccine — saw sales climb 11 per cent to US$1.24 billion amid the pandemic. The company won US approval in June for an updated version for adults, Prevnar 20, that protects against seven more strains of pneumococcal disease.

In May, Pfizer and partner Myovant got approval for Myfembree, for reducing heavy menstrual bleeding due to uterine fibroids in premenopausal women.

Pfizer said it now expects adjusted full-year earnings in the range of US$3.95 to US$4.05 per share, up from its May forecast of US$3.55 to US$3.65 per share, and revenue in the range of US$78 billion to US$80 billion, up from US$70.5 billion to US$72.5 billion.