The Danish biotech on Thursday reported stronger-than-expected earnings and forecasts hitting the upper range of its full-year revenue target amid the ongoing mpox outbreak.
Bavarian Nordic announced second-quarter 2024 earnings on Thursday that beat expectations and a new order for 440,000 doses of orthopoxvirus vaccine Jynneos, as the global effort to stem the current mpox outbreak ramps up.
The order was placed by “an undisclosed European country,” CEO Paul Chaplin said in a statement, noting that the batch “was anticipated as part of the 2024 guidance and as such, has no impact on the remaining vaccine capacity.”
Bavarian Nordic is preparing to boost manufacturing to ensure that countries and communities in need will have “continued equitable access to our mpox vaccine,” Chapin said. In addition to its standing orders, the company can supply up to two million more doses this year and produce 10 million additional doses by the end of 2025.
The undisclosed European country is only the latest purchaser of Bavarian Nordic’s Jynneos. Last week, the European Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority ordered 175,420 doses of the mpox vaccine, slated for donation to Africa’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Previously, the U.S. government paid Bavarian Nordic $156.8 million for the bulk manufacture of Jynneos—a transaction that will be fulfilled and invoiced this year.
Bavarian Nordic also previously received funding from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovations to conduct a trial of its mpox vaccines in African populations, including children aged two years and older. According to the company, the study is meant to support the approval of Jynneos in the region.
Bolstered by these recent deals, Bavarian Nordic confirmed its guidance for 2024, with the company now expecting revenue in the upper end of its previously announced range. For the full year, the vaccine developer now expects to earn around $800 million or 5.3 billion Danish Kroner.
In Q2, Bavarian Nordic recorded revenue of around $210 million or 1.427 billion Kroner, which according to Jefferies analyst Peter Welford came ahead of the consensus analyst estimate of 1.34 billion Kroner. The strong performance was driven by sales of the rabies vaccine Rabavert and the tick-born encephalitis shot Encepur, revenues from which “have reached levels exceeding expectations,” Welford wrote in a note to investors.
Bavarian Nordic acquired Rabavert and Encepur from GSK in 2019.
