Novartis 3Q Net Income Climbs as Drug Sales Grow
October 22 2019 - 1:56AM
Dow Jones News
By Carlo Martuscelli
Novartis AG (NOVN.EB) said Tuesday that net income rose 8% in
the third quarter as it benefited from growing sales across its
drug portfolio.
Net income in the period was $2.04 billion, growing from $1.88
billion last year, on sales that rose 10% to $12.17 billion. An
analyst consensus forecast provided by FactSet estimated quarterly
net income of $2.47 billion and sales of $11.71 billion.
The Swiss drug giant singled out cardiovascular drug Entresto as
well as psoriasis treatment Cosentyx as helping drive topline
growth.
Core operating profit, a figure watched by analysts that strips
out extraordinary items, was $3.75 billion, up from $3.26
billion
Sales of Zolgensma, a gene-therapy for infant spinal muscular
atrophy and which is now the world's most expensive drug, totaled
$160 million, well ahead of the $90 million forecast by analysts at
French brokerage Kepler Cheuvreux.
In August, Novartis disclosed that data manipulation occurred
during the development of the therapy, with two researchers exiting
the company in the wake of the scandal.
Novartis said that it expects sales in 2019 for its focused
medicines company to grow by a high single-digit percentage at
constant currency. Core operating income is expected to grow by a
mid-to-high teen percentage, also stripping out currency
effects.
Write to Carlo Martuscelli at carlo.martuscelli@dowjones.com;
@carlomartu
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 22, 2019 01:41 ET (05:41 GMT)
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