AstraZeneca reveals low second quarter results

Hannah Blake

pharmaphorum

AstraZeneca has revealed its revenue for the second quarter is down by 18% to US $6.7million, but the company says that despite this profit slump, its financial targets for 2012 remain unchanged.

As well as the challenging market conditions, loss of exclusivity on several key brands was a reason for the decline – in the US, revenues were down by 29%, with the patent expiry of Seroquel IR (quetiapine) in March 2012 accounting for 80% of this figure. In Western Europe, profits decreased by 20% due to the increased generic competition in AZ’s Nexium (esomeprazole), Atacand (candesartan) and Merrem (meropenem).

“As we expected, the loss of exclusivity on some key brands and tough market conditions have resulted in a decline in revenue and earnings in the second quarter. Despite these challenges, we are on track to achieve our financial targets for the full year.”

Simon Lowth, Interim Chief Executive Officer at AstraZeneca, comments on the results.

AZ’s core EPS target range for the full year is expected to maintain at US$5.85 to $6.15. This is largely due to the company’s recent acquisition of Ardea Biosciences Inc., and the continuing expansion of its diabetes alliance through Bristol-Myers Squibb’s recent acquisition of Amylin Pharmaceuticals.