Results Of AbbVie Drop But It’s Not As Severe As Expected; Shares Rise

(CTN News) – The pharmaceutical company AbbVie (ABBV) announced on Thursday that it had posted profits and sales for the second quarter that were lower than a year earlier, but exceeded expectations. In response to the news, AbbVie stock soared.

The company’s earnings for the second quarter came in at $2.91 per share, down 13% from a year ago, which included in-process research and development costs that reduced profits.

There was a 5% drop in revenue to $13.86 billion, which represents a decline of 5%.

In spite of this, analysts predicted that the company would earn profits of $2.83 per share on revenue of $13.54 billion. On sales of $14.58 billion, AbbVie had earned $3.37 per share on revenue of $14.58 billion a year earlier.

It is worth noting that stock jumped 3.7% to 147.15 during the morning trade today on the stock market.

Stocks of AbbVie are expected to retreat in 2023

In the year 2023, the stock of AbbVie had fallen by 12 percent before the earnings report was released.

Despite the rise of more affordable biosimilar competitors, Humira’s sales are declining as the company deals with falling sales of the drug.

The drug Humira is used for treating a variety of autoimmune conditions as well as inflammations. There have been rumors that Amgen (AMGN) will launch a biosimilar to Humira at a steep discount compared to its competitor.

As customers used up the back inventory of newer immunology drugs Rinvoq and Skyrizi, sales of the newer immunology drugs slowed in the early part of 2023.

As a result of the sales of Vraylar, a treatment for schizophrenia in adults and adolescents, AbbVie stock has experienced a great deal of growth. In addition, the company has stated that sales in China have recovered in the last few months.

As well as anti-wrinkle treatment Botox, AbbVie is also a leading supplier of cancer medicines like Imbruvica and Venclexta. By 2020, AbbVie will have acquired Allergan, the maker of Botox.

There is a possibility that longtime CEO Rick Gonzalez may step down in the coming years, which could be a wild card for investors in AbbVie stock. According to analysts, that could happen as soon as 2024.

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