Pfizer pharmaceutical company reported a launch of cost-cutting programs as demand for their COVID-19 drugs plummet, underperforming Wall Street’s expectations.
The company announced on Tuesday that its quarterly vaccine and pill sales fell short in 2023, making this year the lowest for COVID product sales following strong demand at the peak of the pandemic.
According to Reuters, Comirnaty (BioNTech, Pfizer vaccine) sales declined 83% to $1.49 billion in the second quarter and Paxlovid (antiviral treatment) revenue fell monumentally – 98% to $143 million.
But, Pfizer did maintain a forecast for annual COVID revenues at roughly $21.5 billion.
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“Clearly, there is a higher level of uncertainty regarding the demand projections for our COVID-19 products than for the rest of the business,” CEO Albert Bourla said.
Pfizer results compared with Wall Street expectations, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:
- Earnings per share: 67 cents per share adjusted vs. 57 cents per share expected
- Revenue: $12.73 billion vs. $13.27 billion expected
Pfizer is preparing for a continued decline in revenue in the coming years as some of its top-selling drugs are expected to face competition from cheaper generic treatments.
At present, the company’s shares fell 1% in premarket trading. This decrease comes in the context of the company’s shares having already declined by nearly 30% throughout the year, leading to Pfizer’s market value totaling approximately $203 billion.
A development in Pfizer’s plan to recover will be to sell COVID-related products directly to healthcare providers, starting in the fall. They are confident with the expectation of COVID vaccine sales reaching $13.5 billion in 2023, while also aiming for $8 billion in revenue from Paxlovid.
The company’s cautious outlook regarding COVID-related sales coupled with the fluctuations in the stock market will certainly be closely monitored by investors and industry experts alike.
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