Amgen Sees Profit Increase, Raises Guidance
October 27 2016 - 04:40PM
Dow Jones News
Amgen Inc. reported third-quarter earnings rose 8.3% as the
biotechnology company boosted its 2016 outlook as the results beat
expectations.
For the year, Amgen raised its per-share earnings estimate to
$11.40 to $11.55 on revenue of $22.6 billion to $22.8 billion, from
its previous estimate for per-share profit of $11.10 to $11.40 on
revenue of $22.5 billion to $22.8 billion.
Like many other drugmakers, Amgen has been counting on new
medicines brought to market, along with cost cuts, as some older
drugs face competition from lower-priced treatments.
Sales of one of Amgen's newer drugs, anti-cholesterol treatment
Repatha, which initially got off to a slow start, gained more
traction in the latest quarter. Repatha sales reached $40 million,
up from $27 million in the second quarter and $3 million a year
earlier.
Amgen has said restrictions on Repatha's use by health insurers
and drug-benefit managers had been blunting sales of the drug that
initially was approved by U.S. regulators more than a year ago.
Even so, the company has been optimistic about Repatha's long-term
prospects as it works with such payers and gets more data on
patient outcomes.
Among other topics investors may be listening for Thursday on
the conference call will be any update on Amgen's progress in the
market for biosimilars, less expensive versions of biotech drugs.
That's an area where Amgen has roles on both sides.
In September, the FDA approved Amgen's biosimilar version of
AbbVie Inc.'s Humira. A month earlier, Novartis AG's biosimilar for
Amgen's Enbrel, which competes with Humira, also won FDA
approval.
Among Amgen's other key drugs, sales of Neupogen fell 36% to
$183 million, mostly owing to competition in the U.S., including
Zarxio, Novartis AG's biosimilar version of the Amgen's drug for
chemotherapy patients.
Investors also may be listening on the call for details about
Amgen's strategy for multiple-myeloma drug Kyprolis, which failed
to meet its primary endpoint of superior progression-free survival
against a rival drug in a recent study, results that could limit
use in previously untreated patients. Still in the latest quarter,
Kyprolis sales climbed 34% to $183 million.
Sales of bone drugs Prolia and Xgeva also continued to boost
Amgen's top line, rising 18% and 4% respectively.
Over all, Amgen reported a profit of $2.02 billion, or $2.68 a
share, up from $1.86 billion, or $2.44 a share, a year earlier.
Excluding restructuring-related charges and other items, adjusted
per-share earnings rose to $3.02 from $2.72. Revenue increased 1.5%
to $5.81 billion.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected per-share profit of
$2.79 and revenue of $5.73 billion.
Overall, operating expenses declined 3%.
Research-and-development expenses fell 12% mostly on lower spending
for to support later-stage clinical programs and cost-savings
efforts.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 27, 2016 16:25 ET (20:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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