The corporate logo of pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline is seen at their facility in Stevenage, Britain, on October 26, 2020.
Dando Ruvic | Reuters
GlaxoSmithKline on wednesday he picked it up long term perspective after the impressive launch of his new RSV vaccine.
The shot targets the serious and in some cases life-threatening virus it closed about £1.2 billion, or $1.5 billion, in sales after only being on the market for about half a year.
GSK in November had forecast 2023 sales for Arexvy shot between 900 million pounds, or $1.1 billion, and 1 billion pounds, or $1.26 billion, after strong U.S. launch
The launch of the first vaccines targeting respiratory syncytial virus by GSK and Pfizer Last year turned out to be a boon for both companies — although Pfizer saw fewer sales than its rival planned.
GSK said it now expects to generate sales of more than 38 billion pounds, or $48 billion, by 2031, compared with the previous forecast £33 billion or $41.8 billion. In 2023, the British pharmaceutical industry earned 30.3 billion pounds or almost 38.5 billion dollars.
GSK now expects sales to grow more than 7% at a compound annual growth rate between 2021 and 2026, with adjusted operating profit growing more than 11% over that period. In 2021, it had guided for growth rates of more than 5% for revenue and more than 10% for earnings.
The company’s RSV shot partly drove the higher forecast. The vaccine is approved for use in adults age 60 and older, but could eventually get the green light for those ages 50 to 59, CEO Emma Walmsley said on a media call.
An expanded approval of the vaccine could address another 15 million vulnerable patients, he noted.
“We are really excited about the prospects of this vaccine as part of our high value portfolio in adult vaccination which will continue to support this upgraded outlook over the long term,” said Walmsley.
He added that GSK is planning for at least 12 major product launches, most of which will take place over the next four years.
Arexvy became the world’s first RSV vaccine to win regulatory approval in May after being given the go-ahead by the US Food and Drug Administration. The download later won approvals in the UK, Canada, Japan and many other countries.
With sales of $1.5 billion last year, Arexvy is now a “blockbuster” vaccine, meaning when a product has annual sales of at least $1 billion.
The vaccine has about a 70% market share for RSV, Walmsley added on Wednesday. This is a huge advantage over GSK’s main competitor in the market, Pfizer, which has an approved RSV vaccine for adults aged 60 and over and expectant mothers who can pass on protection to their children.
Pfizer’s plan, known as Abrysvo, earned about $890 million in sales last year after it was launched, the company said Tuesday.
Pfizer aims to increase RSV market share by establishing vaccination as a “year-round conversation” and expanding the company’s retail contracts and offerings, Chief Executive Albert Burla said during an earnings conference call on Tuesday. The company is also testing the vaccine in people ages 18 to 59.
Burla said during a conference call earlier this month that the shot had a “bad launch.”
Meanwhile, biotech company Modern hopes to launch its own RSV vaccine this year.
RSV usually causes mild cold-like symptoms. But each year the virus kills 6,000 to 10,000 seniors and a few hundred children under 5 in the U.S., according to the CDC.