AstraZeneca generates $275m from sales of Covid vaccines
AstraZeneca generated $275m in revenue from its non-profit Covid-19 vaccine in the first quarter, while sales of cancer drugs and growth in emerging markets helped the drugmaker beat earnings and sales expectations.
The Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company confirmed its full-year forecasts of revenue increasing by a low-teens percentage, with core earnings per share rising faster, to between $4.75 and $5.
Pascal Soriot, AstraZeneca’s chief executive, said the strong performance came despite the pandemic delaying the diagnosis and treatment of many conditions.
“We delivered solid progress in the first quarter of 2021 and continued to advance our portfolio of life-changing medicines,” he said. “We expect the impact of Covid to reduce and anticipate a performance acceleration in the second half of 2021.”
AstraZeneca reported revenue of $7.3bn, excluding the contribution from the vaccine it developed with the University of Oxford, up 15 per cent year on year and higher than the consensus forecast for $7bn. On a constant currency basis, sales were up 11 per cent.
Oncology sales from drugs including Tagrisso, Imfinzi, and Lynparza increased by 20 per cent from the same period the year before, while revenue from emerging markets was up 14 per cent, with a 19 per cent increase in China.
Soriot has invested in rejuvenating AstraZeneca’s pipeline of drugs, particularly in oncology. The company is outperforming British rival GSK, which reported falling revenue and earnings earlier this week.
Core earnings per share soared 55 per cent to $1.63, beating the average analyst estimate of $1.48. Pre-tax profit was $1.6bn.
Costs related to producing the vaccine outpaced revenue in the first quarter, resulting in a 3 cents negative impact on EPS and a post-tax loss of $40m.
AstraZeneca is providing its Covid-19 vaccine on a non-profit basis during the pandemic, selling it at a lower price than its competitors for about $3 to $4.
The vaccine is therefore making a far more modest contribution than at Pfizer, which forecasts $15bn in revenue from the shot it developed with BioNTech this year, and Moderna, which expects $18.4bn from sales of its jab in 2021.
AstraZeneca has delivered about 68m vaccines, booking sales of $224m in Europe, $43m in emerging markets, and $8m in established markets in the rest of the world. Its shot is not yet approved for use in the US, where the government plans to send its stockpiles to other countries.
Working with India’s Serum Institute, AstraZeneca has sent 48m doses to 120 countries through Covax, the vaccine distribution programme for low to middle-income nations backed by the World Health Organization.