Amgen Reports Q2 2020 Financial Results: Revenue Up 6%, Net Profit Down 17%

Compiled by Keke

On July 28, Amgen released its financial report for the second quarter of 2020, achieving a revenue of $6.2 billion, a year-on-year increase of 6%, with product sales amounting to $5.9 billion, also growing by 6%; profits were $1.8 billion, down 17%. Meanwhile, Amgen reaffirmed its full-year revenue outlook, expecting it to be between $25 billion and $25.6 billion, and raised its earnings per share forecast.

Amgen stated that during the COVID-19 pandemic, its revenue growth was primarily driven by the launch of several new drugs, which boosted sales by 13%. These included Otezla, acquired from Celgene in November 2019, as well as Mvasi, Kanjinti, Evenity, and Repatha. However, due to the impact of the pandemic and intense competition from biosimilars and generic drugs, this growth was partially offset by declines in the sales volume of certain products.

Amgen believes that the pandemic disrupted many patient-physician interactions, leading to delays in diagnosis and treatment, which impacted its product portfolio to varying degrees. However, the impact was primarily concentrated in the early part of the second quarter, with sales beginning to recover in the latter weeks of the quarter.

Meanwhile, the company explained that the decrease in net income for the second quarter was primarily attributable to the related costs arising from the Otezla transaction and the losses incurred from its collaboration with BeiGene.

Revenue from Major Pharmaceuticals and Influencing Factors During the Reporting Period:

Enbrel (etanercept): Sales of $1.2 billion, a 9% decline; due to competition from products in the same therapeutic area, the drug continues to lose market share, while the pandemic has led to a reduction in rheumatology diagnoses and treatments.

Prolia (denosumab): Sales of $659 million, a 6% decline; reduced patient visits for osteoporosis led to decreased drug demand.

Neulasta (pegfilgrastim): Sales amounted to $593 million, a 28% decline; competition from biosimilars impacted net selling prices and drug demand. However, supported by the NCCN guidelines, overall demand for long-acting granulocyte colony-stimulating factors (G-CSFs) increased. Amgen stated that in the long-acting G-CSF segment, Neulasta Onpro remains the preferred choice for physicians and patients, with its market share rising to 58% this quarter.

Xgeva (denosumab): Sales of $435 million, a 13% decline; partly due to revised treatment recommendations in response to the pandemic, which prioritized this drug for cancer therapy over bone-targeted therapy.

Aranesp (darbepoetin alfa): Sales of $387 million, a decrease of 11%; impacted by lower net selling prices and competition affecting drug demand.

Kyprolis (carfilzomib): Sales of $253 million, a 5% decline; the pandemic led to reduced medical visits among patients with multiple myeloma.

Epogen (epoetin alfa): Sales of $161 million, a 28% decrease; impacted by lower drug demand and reduced net selling prices.

Otezla (apremilast): Sales reached $561 million, exceeding analysts' expectations of $540 million.

Repatha (evolocumab): $200 million in sales, a 32% increase, with volume surging 69%; part of the revenue was offset by lower net selling prices.

Mvasi (bevacizumab-awwb): Sales of $172 million; this biosimilar has captured 39% of the U.S. bevacizumab market, but competition is expected to intensify given that Pfizer’s Zirabev also entered the market earlier this year.

Evenity (romosozumab-aqqg): Sales of $101 million, a 260.7% increase. Despite the pandemic reducing the number of new patients to some extent, new prescriptions continued to rise during this period.

Aimovig (erenumab-aooe): Sales of $98 million, an 18% increase; Amgen noted that although the pandemic negatively impacted new prescriptions in the CGRP therapeutic area (primarily for migraine), the drug captured a 41% market share this quarter.

Source: Amgen Reports Second Quarter 2020 Financial Results