Top 10 Pharma Giants by Revenue Growth in Q1 2024 File IPO Prospectus

Recently, the industry media FiercePharma released the list of revenue growth rates for global pharmaceutical giants in the first quarter of 2024. Eighteen of the top 25 companies in the global biopharmaceutical industry achieved year-on-year revenue growth.

Notably, in Q1 2024, nine companies achieved double-digit growth, an increase of one company compared to the same period in 2023.

Revenue Growth Rate of Major Pharmaceutical Companies in Q1 2024

Image Source: FiercePharma

Nine Companies Achieved Double-Digit Growth

Among the nine companies that achieved double-digit revenue growth in Q1 2024, the two giants of weight-loss drugs still firmly ranked among the top three. In addition, three Japanese companies performed notably, securing the 2nd, 5th, and 8th positions respectively.

Eli Lilly ranked first with a 28% growth rate, while Novo Nordisk came in third with a 22% growth rate.

According to GlobalData's forecast in April, Eli Lilly's tirzepatide (Mounjaro) is expected to surpass Novo Nordisk's semaglutide (Ozempic) as the leader in the blood glucose regulation treatment field, generating a staggering $34 billion in sales by 2029. As a result, Eli Lilly may remain at the top for a long time.

In the first quarter of 2024, the sales of Semaglutide reached $4.3 billion, with a growth rate of 35%, while the sales of Tirzepatide were $1.8 billion, tripling that of the same period in 2023.

However, Novo Nordisk's 22% growth rate in the first quarter placed it among the industry leaders, but it still marked a decline compared to the high growth rate of 37% in the previous quarter. Moreover, this was the first time since the second quarter of 2022 that Novo Nordisk experienced consecutive declines in performance, primarily due to production capacity failing to meet market demand.

Therefore, Novo Nordisk announced in February that it would acquire three production bases of Catalent for $16.5 billion to address capacity shortages.

Daiichi Sankyo's revenue increased by 25%, primarily due to the income generated from licensing three ADC products under development to MSD for a $4.5 billion upfront payment. Notably, in 2023, as a result of this deal, Daiichi Sankyo raised its projected revenue for 2024 by 100 billion yen (approximately $662 million).

Another Japanese company, Astellas, reported a 17% increase in revenue this quarter, although part of the gains were attributed to Izervay, a drug for geographic atrophy. In 2023, Astellas acquired Iveric Bio for $5.9 billion, bringing Izervay under its portfolio, marking the largest acquisition in Astellas' history.

Amgen's sales in the quarter increased by 22% year-over-year. Of its $1.3 billion year-over-year revenue growth, $914 million was attributed to products acquired through the acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics.

In addition, companies that achieved double-digit high growth include AstraZeneca (17%), Vertex (13%), Takeda (10%), and Novartis (10%). Among them, AstraZeneca and Vertex achieved quarter-on-quarter revenue growth of 6% and 7%, respectively, demonstrating strong growth momentum.

If we talk about the contributors to AstraZeneca's excellent performance, the heart treatment drug Farxiga, the rare disease drug Ultomiris, and the cancer treatment drugs Calquence, Imfinzi, and Tagrisso must be mentioned. These drugs are currently in their sales golden period.

Vertex's cystic fibrosis drug sales continue to climb, with the main product TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO combination therapy generating $2.48 billion in sales, accounting for over 90%, a year-over-year increase of more than 18%, also contributing to the company's primary growth. Meanwhile, its sickle cell disease gene therapy Casgevy is being steadily rolled out.

Nine companies achieved single-digit growth.

Apart from the three major Japanese pharmaceutical giants and the "twin stars" of weight-loss drugs leading double-digit high growth, nine other giant companies in the biopharmaceutical industry achieved single-digit revenue growth in the first quarter. These include Merck & Co., Inc. (9%), GlaxoSmithKline PLC. (6%), Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (5%), Organon (5%), Gilead Sciences, Inc. (5%), Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (4%), Sanofi S.A. (2%), Johnson & Johnson (2%), and AbbVie Inc. (1%).

MSD's revenue growth is driven alongside the continued success of its blockbuster drug Keytruda, which saw a 20% increase in sales this quarter, reaching $6.9 billion. Meanwhile, the HPV vaccine Gardasil grew by 14%, achieving $2.2 billion in sales. Together, these two products accounted for 58% of the company’s total single-quarter revenue of $15.9 billion.

GSK and Johnson & Johnson both spun off their consumer healthcare divisions in 2023. After implementing a focused prescription drug strategy, they achieved revenue growth of 6% and 2% respectively in the first quarter of 2024.

After experiencing a 4% revenue decline in the fourth quarter of 2023, Gilead Sciences, Inc. achieved 5% growth in the first quarter of 2023, primarily driven by an 18% and 9% increase in sales from its oncology and liver disease portfolios, respectively.

For BMS, Q1 2024 was a quarter of mixed emotions. In addition to reporting a 5% increase in revenue, the company also disclosed a large-scale cost-cutting plan, which includes laying off more than 2,000 employees.

Thanks to strategic shifts, the continued strong performance of core products, or uniquely prescient BD deals, among other favorable factors, 18 pharmaceutical giants had a standout moment in Q1 2024. However, seven other companies faced a different start to the quarter.

Seven Companies with Q1 Performance Decline

Among the companies with declining sales in the first quarter, a surprising new member is Regeneron. Despite its flagship product Dupixent continuing to show growth, total product sales still fell by 1%, mainly due to a 2% drop in sales of its eye disease treatment drug Eylea. Notably, Bayer, Regeneron's partner for Eylea, also saw a 3% decline in Q1 revenue.

Pfizer's sales for the quarter dropped by 19%, making it the only company in the industry to experience a continuous double-digit decline in the first quarter. However, the main reason for the decline was the reduced market demand for its COVID-related products.

Despite this, Pfizer still sent out positive signals, with its $14.9 billion revenue surpassing Wall Street analysts' forecasts by $1 billion. Additionally, this marks Pfizer's third consecutive quarter of sequential revenue growth. Excluding sales of COVID-related products, Pfizer’s revenue in the quarter increased by 11%.

Despite the soaring sales of Roche's eye disease treatment drug Vabysmo, which quickly captured market share from Eylea, its product sales still declined by 6%.

Other companies that saw a decline in revenue include Biogen and Viatris, with decreases of 7% and 2%, respectively.

As sales of multiple sclerosis products decline, Biogen expects this trend to continue throughout 2024, as it anticipates its annual revenue will face a fifth consecutive year of decline.

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