US-based Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) has announced a 10% increase in revenue in the three months to September, driven by strong demand across all four of its key therapeutic areas.
Revenues topped out at $11.6bn, which included $7.3bn in US sales (up by 12% on last year) and $4.3bn in international revenues, up by 8% on the same quarter in 2020.
The company reported earnings per share of $2, higher than analysts’ predictions. Its shares are up by 37% from the beginning of the year.
“Our strong results reflect increased adoption of our new product portfolio and continued demand growth across all four core therapeutic areas,” said board chair and CEO, Dr Giovanni Caforio. “Our deep and diverse product pipeline, commercial execution and financial flexibility provide a strong foundation that is enabling the company to bring new medicines that benefit patients with serious unmet needs, drive in-line product performance and deliver sustained growth.”
The drivers of growth were multiple myeloma drug Revlimid (lenalidomide), which saw sales of $3.34bn (up by 11%), blood-thinner Eliquis (apixaban) with $2.41bn (up by 15%) and cancer drug Opdivo (nivolumab) with sales of $1.9bn (up by 7%).
With generic competition for Revlimid expected next year, BMS is keen to highlight its new product sales, which more than doubled from $161m in the first quarter to $344m in Q3.
The company’s CAR-T cancer drugs posted strong growth: Abecma (idecabtagene vicleucel), which launched in May as the first cell-based gene therapy for multiple myeloma, had $71m in sales, up from $24m in Q2, while Breyanzi (lisocabtagene maraleucel), launched this year in lymphoma, had $30m in sales, up from $17m earlier in the year.
Commenting on the past three months, Caforio welcomed the decision by the US Court of Appeals to confirm exclusivity on Eliquis until 2028. “This decision confirms our belief in the value of the science behind Eliquis and the underlying IP, protecting its innovation,” he said.
The company also highlighted several pipeline achievements. Firstly, “a compelling and differentiated profile” for Deucrava (deucravacitinib), seen in two phase 3 studies that confirmed it as “the oral treatment of choice in psoriasis”, and its potential as a treatment for psoriatic arthritis.
Also, the priority review by the FDA for relatlimab and nivolumab fixed-dose combination for the treatment of patients 12 years and older with unresectable or metastatic melanoma, based on data from the phase 2/3 RELATIVITY-047 trial.