Pfizer To Revert To ‘Business As Normal’ After Pricing Increase Pause, CEO Says On Earnings Call
The pharmaceutical giant signaled that prescription drug price increases could return in 2019 after postponing planned hikes in July. The news was made during Pfizer's third-quarter earnings call, in which the drugmaker also said its profits were up but that revenue did not hit forecasts.
The Hill:
Pfizer CEO: 'Business As Normal' On Drug Prices Next Year Despite Trump Pressure
Pfizer CEO Ian Read said the company will return to “business as normal” on its drug pricing in January, after agreeing to hold off on price increases earlier this year following pressure from President Trump. Read noted on an earnings call that the agreement to hold off on price increases would end at the end of the year, at which point the company will return to pricing based on the market. “We price to the marketplace, we price competitively,” Read said. (Sullivan, 10/30)
The Wall Street Journal:
Pfizer Narrows Guidance On Tougher Pricing, Generic Competition
The company attributed the adjustments partly to lower-than-expected revenue from its “Essential Health” business selling products that have lost patent protection and sterile injectables, which are dealing with shortages. Pfizer also cited pricing pressures on the unit’s drugs, along with recent unfavorable foreign-exchange rates due to the weakening of some emerging-market currencies and the euro. (Chin and Rockoff, 10/30)
In other pharmaceutical company news, former executives at Valeant and mail-order pharmacy Philidor are sentenced to prison. And ex-employees at Genetech are arrested for allegedly stealing trade secrets —
Stat:
Former Valeant And Philidor Executives Are Sentenced To One Year In Prison
The sentencing comes three years after the drug maker became enmeshed in scandals over its pricing and accounting practices, which led to congressional hearings, a loss of confidence among investors, and a subsequent turnover in management and the board. The Philidor episode was particularly explosive, though, because Valeant failed to properly disclose its relationship with the pharmacy. (Silverman, 10/30)
Stat:
Former Genentech Employees Are Arrested On Charges They Stole Trade Secrets
Three former Genentech employees were arrested for allegedly stealing trade secrets and funneling the confidential information to a company in Taiwan, marking the latest episode in which a drug maker in the U.S. has purportedly encountered sensitive data being shipped overseas. In this instance, a former principal scientist named Xanthe Lam, who worked for Genentech from 1986 through 2017, helped to siphon information about four drugs — the Avastin, Rituxan, and Herceptin cancer treatments, as well as the Pulmozyme cystic fibrosis medication — to JHL Biotech, which was founded by former Genentech employees to develop biosimilars, according to court documents. (Silverman, 10/30)
Amgen, Sanofi and Rite Aid also make news —
Reuters:
Amgen Posts Higher Quarterly EPS, Repatha Sales Fall Short
Amgen Inc on Tuesday said stock buybacks lifted its third-quarter earnings per share, but operating income fell as expenses rose and sales of some key products declined. Total revenue for the quarter rose 2 percent from a year earlier to $5.9 billion. ... Amgen last week said it slashed the U.S. list price for cholesterol drug Repatha by 60 percent to $5,850 a year, mainly to reduce out-of-pocket costs for patients on Medicare, the federal government’s health plan for seniors. (Beasley, 10/30)
The Wall Street Journal:
Sanofi Returns To Growth
French pharmaceuticals heavyweight Sanofi SA reported a rise in key third-quarter metrics Wednesday, with its bet on higher-value drugs seeming to offset declining revenue from its diabetes division, long afflicted by the loss of exclusivity for former blockbusters. Net sales at the company increased to 9.39 billion euros ($10.67 billion) from EUR9.06 billion the year prior, buoyed by sales of vaccines and by the specialty-care division Sanofi Genzyme, which grew 36% on year. (Mancini, 10/31)
Stat:
Rite Aid Shareholders Vote To Support Increased Oversight Of Opioid Sales
In the latest response to the opioid crisis, more than half of Rite Aid (RAD) shareholders voted to require the board of the pharmacy chain to report on how the addictive painkillers are monitored, and how the company is managing related financial and reputational risks. Specifically, 57 percent of shareholders supported the resolution, which also called for the Rite Aid board to describe senior executive compensation metrics or policies. The resolution was introduced by the UAW Retiree Benefits Trust, a member of Investors for Opioid Accountability, a coalition of institutional investors that has been pushing wholesalers and pharmacies to take steps to reign in the opioid crisis. (Silverman, 10/30)