AbbVie Inc (NYSE:ABBV) announced a rise in its overall revenue and earnings for the second quarter, though weaker-than-expected sales of its new hepatitis C therapy and top-selling arthritis medicine have increased investors’ concerns regarding ABBV’s future revenue growth.
CEO Richard Gonzalez said in a conference call that in spite of a rapidly growing market for new hepatitis C drugs, US sales of Viekira Pak, ABBV’s new hepatitis C treatment, fell short of the company’s estimates since the product was launched late last year. The drug accounted for worldwide sales of $385 million in Q2, including $227 million in the United States.
Viekira Pak lags behind competing drugs from Gilead Sciences in market share as Gilead’s drugs are introduced in the market first. Gilead’s drug named Harvoni is more suitable for patients as it is a single pill they have to take on daily basis, as compared to multiple pills of Viekira Pak each day.
Gonzalez also stated that the number of patients cured for hepatitis C have dropped in the United States. Gilead is looking forward to release earnings in the coming week that would offer more information about hepatitis C treatment patterns in the country.
Viekira Pak sales also missed consensus forecast. AbbVie is making efforts to increase market share by providing concessions to U.S drug-benefit plans and in return asking them to make Viekira Pak a preferred choice for plan members having hepatitis C.
AbbVie reported that worldwide sales of anti-inflammatory therapy Humira jumped 7.6 percent to $3.5 billion in the second quarter, but fell short of consensus forecast. Sales in the U.S climbed 29 percent and outside the U.S plummeted 14 percent.
The company posted earnings of 83 cents per share for the quarter, up 68 cents per share last year. Adjusted profit jumped to $1.08 per share versus 82 cents per share one year ago.
