Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Q3 sales reached $15.962 billion, up 7% Y/Y, beating the consensus of $15.320 billion, reflecting sustained growth in Oncology and Vaccines.
Lagevrio Q3 sales jumped 51% Y/Y to $640 million, and GARDASIL / GARDASIL 9 sales grew 16% to $2.585 billion.
Excluding Lagevrio (COVID-19 treatment), sales growth was 6%; excluding Lagevrio and the impact of foreign exchange, growth was 8%.
Pharmaceutical sales increased by 11% to $14.26 billion, primarily due to higher sales in oncology, vaccines, and hospital acute care, partially offset by diabetes.
KEYTRUDA sales grew 17% to $6.34 billion, driven by increased global uptake in earlier-stage indications, including triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and continued strong global demand from metastatic indications.
Adjusted EPS came in at $2.13 (+15% Y/Y), surpassing the consensus of $1.95.
Adjusted EPS increases primarily due to operational strength in the business, as well as $0.22 of charges recorded in 2022 related to collaboration and licensing agreements with Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA), Orna Therapeutics and Orion Corporation.
The company’s CEO Robert M. Davis highlighted “disciplined investments” to augment its diverse pipeline with the recently announced collaboration with Daiichi Sankyo.
2023 Guidance: Merck has revised FY23 revenue guidance to $59.7 billion-$60.2 billion versus the consensus of $55.98 billion (prior guidance: $58.6 billion-$59.6 billion).
Outlook includes approximately $1.3 billion of Lagevrio Sales.
MRK forecasts adjusted EPS of $1.33-$1.38 versus consensus of $2.86 (prior guidance: $2.95-$3.05).
The outlook reflects a negative impact from the upfront charge of $5.5 billion, or $1.70 per share, related to the collaboration agreement with Daiichi Sankyo.
Price Action: MRK shares are up 2.76% at $106.49 on the last check Thursday.
