While Regeneron Pharmaceuticals reported better-than-expected third-quarter results, sales of the company’s lead drug Eylea declined amid increased competition.
Pictured: Regeneron logo on a light brown building/Shutterstock, Lev Radin
Regeneron was hit with a sales decrease for its lead drug Eylea (aflibercept) in the third quarter due to a lower net selling price as a result of increased competition with Roche’s Vabysmo (faricimab-svoa).
On Thursday, Regeneron revealed that Eylea pulled in over $1.4 billion in U.S. sales, an 11% drop from $1.6 billion in the third quarter of 2022. The company blamed the decline on “a lower net selling price driven by changing market dynamics, including increased competition.”
In the battle of wet age-related macular degeneration (wAMD) drugs, Vabysmo remained a formidable competitor in the quarter. In its third-quarter results announced last month, Roche reported that Vabysmo sales were 1.6 billion Swiss franc (CHF), or $1.7 billion, around the globe. In contrast, U.S. sales were reported at 1.3 billion CHF, or $1.4 billion, in the third quarter.
Despite its decline in sales, Regeneron is touting the FDA approval for an 8-mg dose of Eylea in August 2023, allowing dosing to occur in wider intervals. The third quarter was the first quarter that the company started recording U.S. sales for Eylea HD, which was approved for wAMD, diabetic macular edema (DME) and diabetic retinopathy.
Under the new high-dose regimen, Eylea injections can be given every four weeks for the first three months across all indications. In diabetic retinopathy, the treatment can be administered every eight to 12 weeks thereafter, while the dosing interval can stretch up to 16 weeks in patients with wAMD and DME.
On the positive side of the ledger, sales of Regeneron’s eczema treatment Dupixent in the third quarter increased 33% to $3.1 billion, while Libtayo brought in $232 million, a 62% jump from the third quarter of last year.
“We have continued our momentum in the third quarter of 2023 with double-digit year-over-year revenue growth, driven by strong Dupixent and Libtayo performance, as well as strong initial uptake of Eylea HD following its late August launch,” Regeneron CEO Leonard Schleifer said in a statement.
Overall, Regeneron pulled in good overall sales numbers for the third quarter, recording over $3.36 billion in revenues, a 15% increase from the same period in 2022. At the same time, Roche hit stumbling blocks in the third quarter with a decline in sales stemming from a decrease in COVID-19 products.
“Our third quarter financial results reflect robust execution across the enterprise, including notable pipeline advances and strong commercial performance,” Regeneron CFO Robert Landry said in a statement.
The company on Thursday also touted its lymphoma treatment, odronextamab, which was accepted by the FDA for priority review. The drug has a target action date of March 31, 2024.
Tyler Patchen is a staff writer at BioSpace. You can reach him at tyler.patchen@biospace.com. Follow him on LinkedIn.
