Thousand Oaks biotech giant Amgen Inc. reported 4 percent revenue growth spurred by global product sales, but lowered its revenue guidance for the year in its third quarter financial results.
Higher unit demand partially offset by lower selling prices is what drove revenue up to $6.7 billion. Double-digit volume growth was experienced by products such as osteoporosis treatments Prolia and Evenity, as well as cholesterol and cardiovascular disease treatment Repatha.
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) drug Lumakras, which was approved earlier this year, accounted for $36 million in sales compared with the $9 million it brought in last quarter. Quarter three was the first full quarter of sales for the drug in the United States.
Lumakras has most recently been approved for second-line NSCLC in Canada and Great Britain. Regulatory reviews are ongoing in Europe, Japan and other markets according to Amgen.
“Our newest product, Lumakras, a first-in-class lung cancer treatment, is off to a strong start and our robust pipeline of potential new medicines across all stages of development sets us up well to drive growth over the long term,” Chief Executive Robert Bradway said in a statement.
Amgen reported a 3 percent decrease in GAAP earnings per share to $3.31. The company attributed the decrease to a $400 million licensing-related expense from its collaboration with Japanese pharmaceutical company Kyowa Kirin.
Amgen announced an agreement with Kyowa Kirin in June to develop and commercialize a human monoclonal antibody for the treatment of atopic dermatitis and potentially other autoimmune diseases.
Amgen’s sales guidance was lowered by about $400 million for the full year, despite the gains made by product sales. The company expects total revenues in the range of $25.8 billion to $26.2 billion.
In response to a question about guidance and the COVID-19 pandemic during a conference call after release of the quarterly report, Bradway said the company was not going to give 2022 guidance.
“I think what you can see is we continue to manage the business effectively,” Bradway said. “That’s reflected in the 4 percent on the top line, 11 percent on the bottom line EPS growth. And we’ll continue to invest in opportunities.”
Amgen’s full-year earnings outlook was raised by 30 cents a share to between $16.50 and $17.10 a share.
