Roche has reported a 7% increase in full-year 2024 sales at constant exchange rates (CER), reaching CHF 60.5bn ($66.9bn). The growth was driven by strong demand for new medicines, which offset declining revenue from older products facing generic competition.
The company’s operating profit increased 14% to CHF 20.8bn ($22.9bn), just below the consensus of CHF 20.9bn ($23bn). Core earnings per share (EPS) rose 7% at CER, and Roche said it is targeting continued high single-digit growth in 2025, aided by cost savings and strong sales of key drugs like eye treatment Vabysmo (faricimab-svoa) and cancer drug Phesgo (pertuzumab / trastuzumab / hyaluronidase-zzfx).
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By GlobalDataSales in Roche’s pharmaceutical division grew 8% to CHF 46.2bn ($50.9bn), fuelled by Vabysmo and Phesgo, as well as multiple sclerosis drug Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) and the haemophilia treatment Hemlibra (emicizumab-kxwh). Combined, these products pulled in CHF 16.9bn ($18.6bn), marking a CHF 3.3bn ($3.6bn) increase over 2023.
Vabsymo, launched in early 2022, was a standout performer for Roche, generating CHF 3.9bn ($4.3bn) in sales due to increasing global demand. However, Roche faced a CHF 1bn sales decline from the loss of exclusivity on older products, including cancer therapies Avastin (bevacizumab), Herceptin (trastuzumab), and Rituxan (rituximab). The expected drop in Covid-19 products also weighed on overall growth, decreasing by CHF 1bn ($1.1bn).
In the 30 January earnings call, Roche’s CEO Thomas Schinecker emphasised that the company’s approach towards mergers and acquisitions will continue to focus on assets with strong scientific backing, and those that make sense financially. The company remains committed to five key therapeutic areas – cardiovascular metabolism, oncology, neurology, immunology, and ophthalmology.
A key recent acquisition was Poseida Therapeutics in a $1.5bn deal, which is set to strengthen Roche’s position in autoimmune diseases. The company initially partnered with Poseida in oncology but expanded its investment after seeing promising data in lupus nephritis. Schinecker described such deals as “in the sweet spot” of Roche’s strategic priorities.
Roche also announced adjustments to its R&D pipeline, discontinuing two early-stage bispecific antibody candidates. The company dropped a HER2xCD3 bispecific RG6194 (runimotamab), which was being developed for breast cancer, and an IL-15 based immunotherapy efbalropendekin alfa, which was designed to stimulate T cells and natural killer cells. The IL-15 asset was initially acquired from Xencor as part of a $120m deal, which later revised its partnership terms, opting out of cost-sharing in favour of milestone-based payments.
Looking ahead, Roche expects continued earnings growth in 2025, driven by newer medicines, cost efficiencies and strategic acquisitions. The company launched two new drugs in 2024, Itovebi (inavolisib) for a hard-to-treat breast cancer and PiaSky (crovalimab) for thes blood disorder paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH). Itovebi and PiaSky are set to generate $1.4bn and $492m in global sales, respectively, in 2030, as per GlobalData’s Pharma Intelligence Center.
GlobalData is the parent company of Pharmaceutical Technology.
