US drug giant Pfizer is posting a drop in sales due to a post-Covid vaccination decline
Covid hangover: Pfizer reported sales of £11.9 billion for the first three months of 2024
US drug giant Pfizer posted a drop in sales due to a post-Covid vaccination decline.
It reported sales of £11.9bn for the first three months of 2024, a fifth decline year-on-year, as it tries to regain its footing after the rapid decline in its Covid business.
Sales of the vaccine fell by 88 per cent to £283 million. But shares rose on Wall Street as bosses raised a key profit measure by 5 percent for 2024, amid “confidence” in the business and ability to cut costs.
It says it is on track to make at least £3.5 billion in savings this year.
The company has also increased its focus on cancer treatments after acquiring drugmaker Seagen for £34 billion last year.
Excluding Covid products, sales increased by 11 percent in the first quarter.
But sales of its vaccine to protect against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) lagged.
Dr. Albert Bourla, the CEO, said a well-executed quarter “set the tone for the year.”
Pfizer’s value soared during the pandemic after it launched a Covid vaccine, but retreated as lockdowns were lifted.
Today it has a market capitalization of around £116 billion, less than half of its pandemic-era peak in late 2021.