Beijing News (Reporter Wang Kala) This year, major multinational pharmaceutical companies have successively disclosed their 2023 annual reports. In terms of total revenue scale, Johnson & Johnson, Roche, Merck, Pfizer, AbbVie, Bayer, Sanofi, AstraZeneca, Novartis, and Bristol-Myers Squibb rank in the top ten, respectively. If other businesses are excluded and only pharmaceutical business revenue is considered, Pfizer remains the TOP1, followed closely by Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, and Merck, with pharmaceutical business revenues all exceeding 50 billion US dollars.
In terms of year-over-year growth in total revenue, Novartis, Johnson & Johnson, and Sanofi ranked in the top three in 2023, with growth rates of 10%, 6.5%, and 5.3%, respectively.
Johnson & Johnson topped the list of multinational pharmaceutical companies with a total revenue of $85.2 billion in 2023. In this year, Johnson & Johnson officially completed the spin-off of its consumer health business, focusing on pharmaceuticals and medical technology. The total revenue reported for the period increased by 6.5% year-over-year. Among this, the pharmaceutical business achieved an income of $54.759 billion, representing a year-over-year growth of 4.2%.
Roche ranked second in the 2023 pharmaceutical company revenue with a total revenue of $65.627 billion. Its pharmaceutical business achieved $49.863 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of over 6%. The oncology segment within the pharmaceutical business contributed $21.334 billion, marking a year-on-year growth of over 4%, making it the highest revenue-generating field in this sector. The neurology segment also achieved an income of $9.44 billion, increasing by 16% year-on-year. Hemophilia and ophthalmology segments generated revenues of $4.635 billion and $3.202 billion respectively, with respective year-on-year growth rates of 16% and 85%.
Merck, with a total revenue of $60.15 billion, ranked third, showing a 1% year-on-year revenue growth. Its pharmaceutical business achieved a revenue of $53.583 billion, increasing by 3% year-on-year. Excluding the impact of the COVID-19 oral drug Molnupiravir, the growth rate was 9%. In 2023, the highly anticipated Pembrolizumab (commonly known as "K drug") generated sales revenue of $25.011 billion, marking a 19% year-on-year increase, and claimed the top spot as the "best-selling drug" of 2023. This drug has been the most popular PD-1 monoclonal antibody in recent years, with over 30 approved indications. It is not only the PD-1 monoclonal antibody with the most approved indications covering various types of cancer but also the immune checkpoint inhibitor with the most comprehensive layout for lung cancer indications. Industry analysts pointed out that the robust growth momentum of K drug is mainly related to its continuous penetration and significant market advantage in key cancer types such as non-small cell lung cancer and triple-negative breast cancer.
In 2022, Pfizer benefited from the COVID-19 pandemic, with its COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty and oral treatment Paxlovid generating sales of $37.806 billion and $18.933 billion respectively, bringing the company's prescription drug business revenue alone to $91.303 billion. However, in 2023, due to a significant decline in sales of these two COVID-19 products, Pfizer's total revenue dropped by 41.7% year-on-year to $58.496 billion, falling from the previous top position to fourth place.
If other business revenues are excluded and only the pharmaceutical business revenue is considered for ranking, Pfizer remains the TOP1 among global pharmaceutical companies. The pharmaceutical businesses of Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, and Merck & Co., Inc. all generated revenues exceeding 50 billion USD, securing positions as TOP2 to TOP4 respectively. Roche, AstraZeneca, Novartis, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Sanofi each reported pharmaceutical revenues surpassing 40 billion USD, ranking from TOP5 to TOP9. GlaxoSmithKline, with a total revenue (i.e., pharmaceutical business revenue) of 37.722 billion USD, ranked as TOP10.
Reporter Wang Kala from The Beijing News
Proofread by Baoqing Liu