Novartis Surpasses Sales Expectations on Strong Medicine Demand

On Tuesday, Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis announced that it had achieved a higher than anticipated profit during the initial quarter of the year.

The net sales increased by 15% on a constant currency basis to reach $13.2 billion, surpassing the analyst estimate of $13.12 billion.

The core operating income amounted to $5.6 billion, marking a 23% increase from the previous quarter, whereas the core net income rose by 22% to reach $4.5 billion.

Due to the robust performance, the company revised its annual forecast, anticipating sales growth in the high single-digit percentage and an increase in core operating income by the low double-digit percentage. Earlier in January, they had provided a broader prediction range.

The sales in the previous quarter were boosted by medications for ailments such as arthritis, breast cancer, multiple sclerosis, and heart failure.

Throughout the quarter, the firm's breast cancer treatment Kisqali experienced a revenue increase of 56%, totaling $956 million.

The heart failure medication Entresto experienced a 22% increase, reaching approximately $2.3 billion, whereas the arthritis treatment Cosentyx showed a revenue boost of 18%, totaling roughly $1.5 billion.

The CEO of Novartis, Vas Narasimhan, pointed out new approvals in the earnings statement as well.

"Additionally, we reached important innovation benchmarks this quarter, including new approvals for Pluvicto in the pre-taxane setting, Vanrafia for IgA nephropathy, and Fabhalta for C3G," stated Narasimhan.

He stated, “We continue to concentrate on progressing our top-tier pipeline and remain assured about meeting our growth expectations.”

Novartis is closely watching decisions from the White House to determine how pharmaceutical products coming into the US will be taxed.

The Trump administration initiated a 21-day nationwide security investigation into the sector earlier this month. At present, pharmaceuticals are not subject to what’s known as a "reciprocal" tariff rate; however, Trump has hinted at potentially applying a 25 percent tax on medications.

Recently, Novartis declared an investment of $23 billion in the U.S. over the coming half-decade to construct and enhance 10 sites. Their objective is to manufacture all medications for American patients within the country.