AbbVie Foresees Strong 2025 Profit Outlook Amidst Humira Competition
AbbVie recently announced its financial projections for 2025, predicting earnings above expectations. This optimism stems from the robust performance of its immunology drugs, Skyrizi and Rinvoq, which are offsetting the significant decline in sales of its blockbuster rheumatoid arthritis medication, Humira.
Humira's quarterly sales plummeted by 49% to $1.68 billion, surpassing analysts' estimates of a $1.99 billion decline. The drug faces intense competition from lower-priced biosimilars that entered the US market in 2023.
To counter the Humira revenue loss, AbbVie is promoting Skyrizi and Rinvoq, projecting them to generate over $31 billion in 2027, exceeding their previous estimate by $4 billion. The company anticipates Skyrizi revenues to exceed $20 billion and Rinvoq revenues to surpass $11 billion by 2027.
"We begin 2025 with tremendous momentum and anticipate net revenues to surpass their previous peak within just the second full year following Humira's US exclusivity loss," said AbbVie CEO Robert Michael.
Despite the competitive landscape, AbbVie has maintained Humira's market share with pharmacy benefit managers by lowering its net price. However, these entities have started excluding Humira from their preferred drug lists for reimbursement.
Through acquisitions, such as its $8.7 billion deal for Cerevel Therapeutics, AbbVie strengthens its drug pipeline, particularly in neuroscience. The company now projects annual adjusted earnings per share of $12.12 to $12.32, outpacing analysts' consensus estimate of $12.18.
For the fourth quarter, AbbVie reported adjusted earnings per share of $2.16, aligning with the consensus estimate of $2.12. (Reported by Puyaan Singh and Christy Santhosh)