Limerick-based pharma giant Regeneron posts better-than-expected earnings

The company expects the demand for its eye drug Eylea to lead to a strong third quarter even in the face of emerging competition from rival drugs. Picture: AP

Regeneron, the US pharma giant which employs around 1,400 people in Limerick, posted slightly better-than-expected earnings for Q2.

The company's quarterly revenue fell 44% to almost $2.86bn (€2.8bn), but came in just ahead of analysts' expectations of $2.8bn (€2.7bn).

The fall was due to the US regulator's decision to limit the use of Regeneron's Covid-19 antibody drug in January in all states due to its lack of effectiveness against the Omicron variant.

The company expects the demand for its eye drug Eylea to lead to a strong third quarter even in the face of emerging competition from rival drugs.

Analysts flagged competition concerns for Eylea as the newly launched drug by Roche called Vabysmo also belongs to the same class of drugs called anti-VEGF.

"Despite new competition, Eylea's share was approximately half of the anti-VEGF category, affirming its status as the gold standard," Regeneron CEO Leonard Schleifer said.

US sales of Eylea, which has dominated the market for treatments for eye diseases, jumped 14% to $1.6bn (€1.5bn) in Q2.

"Ongoing demographic trends such as the aging population and prevalence of diabetes support anticipated mid to high single-digit category growth for the foreseeable future," said senior Regeneron executive Marion McCourt.

The company is testing Eylea in two chronic eye diseases, with data expected later this year.

Wells Fargo analyst Mohit Bansal says the data will be "the most important catalyst" for the company, as the high dosage has the potential to make Eylea sustainable for a longer term.

- Reuters