NEW YORK, Oct 26 — Merck & Co today reported higher-than-expected results in the third quarter on surprisingly strong demand for its Covid-19 treatment, primarily in Japan, and raised its annual sales forecast for the therapy.
Sales of molnupiravir, the Covid-19 antiviral pill sold under brand name Lagevrio, jumped 47 per cent to US$640 million (RM3 billion) in the quarter, crushing Wall Street estimates of US$120 million, according to LSEG data.
Molnupiravir was initially hailed as a potential breakthrough when few treatment options were available, but was soon eclipsed by Pfizer’s rival treatment Paxlovid, which had more impressive data.
Paxlovid dominates the out-of-hospital Covid-treatment market in the United States, and in the EU, the regulator recommended against use of Merck’s drug. In Japan, however, the drug has been a market leader, Merck has said previously.
Merck raised Lagevrio full-year sales forecast to US$1.3 billion.
Third-quarter sales of Merck’s top-selling cancer immunotherapy, Keytruda, stood at US$6.34 billion, surpassing analysts’ average estimate of US$6.22 billion.
Gardasil, its vaccine to prevent cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), generated sales of US$2.59 billion, rising 13 per cent but missing analysts’ average estimate of US$2.69 billion.
“As investors have come to expect a beat and raise on Keytruda, strength in Gardasil is also needed,” Wells Fargo analyst Mohit Bansal said in a note, adding that investors seem to expect more sales growth from the vaccine.
Shares of Merck were up nearly 1 per cent in choppy premarket trading.
The company now expects 2023 sales in the range of US$59.7 billion to US$60.2 billion, up from its previous forecast of US$58.6 billion to US$59.6 billion.
The company posted sales of US$15.96 billion in the reported quarter, compared to the average analyst estimate of US$15.3 billion.
The US drugmaker earned an adjusted profit of US$2.13 per share, beating estimates of US$1.95 per share. — Reuters
