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AstraZeneca PLC on Thursday said revenue decreased in the first quarter of the year as Covid-19 related sales dropped, but pretax profit surged.
The Cambridge, UK-based pharmaceutical firm reported revenue for the first quarter of 2023 of $10.88 billion, decreasing 4.5% from $11.39 billion the year prior.
AstraZeneca noted that when excluding the sales of Covid-19 medicines, revenue grew by 15% year-on-year. The firm noted that Covid-19 medicine sales saw a $1.46 billion decline.
Pretax profit was $2.26 billion, multiplying from $553 million in the first quarter of 2022, while basic earnings per share, increased to $1.16, multiplying from $0.25 a year ago.
Looking ahead, the firm said it expected revenue to increase by a low-to-mid single-digit percentage. When excluding Covid-19 related sales, it anticipates a rise in the low double digits.
Chief Executive Pascal Soriot said: ‘AstraZeneca had a strong start to 2023, with total revenue excluding Covid-19 medicines increasing 15%. Our performance in emerging markets was particularly strong and I am impressed by the growth and pace of innovation I see in China, which underscores the competitive advantage of our leading presence in this country.
‘Our pipeline momentum continued with positive phase 3 results for a Lynparza-plus-Imfinzi combination in ovarian cancer, Imfinzi in lung cancer, and promising new data for Enhertu across a range of cancer types. Additionally, in the year to date we have started six new Phase 3 trials and are on track to initiate 30 over the course of 2023.’
AstraZeneca shares rose 0.4% to 11,886.00 pence each in London on Thursday morning.
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