Amgen (AMGN) reported soaring fourth-quarter earnings Monday, but sales didn’t inch up enough to top Wall Street’s expectations — leaving Amgen stock in limbo.
“We realized strong volume growth for many of our key products during last year,” said RobertA. Bradway, chairman and chief executive officer. “These products, combined with our many pipeline opportunities, position us well for long-term growth.”
Result Overview
For the fourth quarter, total revenues increased 3% to $6.8 billion in comparison to the fourth quarter of 2020, driven by increased Other Revenue from the Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) COVID-19 manufacturing collaboration. Product sales decreased 1% globally for the fourth quarter.
Volumes grew double-digits for a number of products including Prolia® (denosumab), MVASI® (bevacizumab-awwb), Repatha® (evolocumab) and EVENITY® (romosozumab-aqqg).
For the full year, total revenues increased 2% to $26.0 billion driven by increased Other Revenue from the Lilly collaboration. Product sales for the full year were flat versus 2020 with a 7% growth in unit volumes offset by a 7% decline in net selling price.
But sales from Amgen’s biggest moneymaker, Enbrel, declined 13% to $1.11 billion. Enbrel treats autoimmune conditions. Amgen blamed lower net selling price and lower inventory for the dip. It also noted another of its drugs, Otezla, gained Food and Drug Administration approval for plaque psoriasis, chipping away at Enbrel sales.
Among Amgen’s bigger products, sales of osteoporosis treatment Prolia rose 17% to $873 million and revenue from cholesterol treatment Repatha inched 8% ahead to $273 million. But Aimovig, its migraine prevention drug, brought in just $90 million, falling 13% year over year.
Meanwhile, sales of bone marrow-stimulating drugs Neulasta and Neupogen tumbled 35% and 33%, respectively. Both are facing off against biosimilar competition.
Amgen didn’t provide guidance for 2022, instead of saying it will do so at its business review early Tuesday. For the year, Amgen stock analysts expect $17.67 in earnings per share and $26.92 billion in sales.
About Amgen
Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing, and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology.
Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people’s lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world’s leading independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of patients around the world, and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.
