By Leroy Leo and Patrick Wingrove
(Reuters) -AbbVie increased its profit forecast for 2024 on Thursday after reporting strong sales of immunology drugs and quarterly results that exceeded Wall Street expectations, sending its shares to a record high.
The company boosted both ends of its profit forecast range by 10 cents - two cents more than the second-quarter beat - and now expects to earn between $10.71 and $10.91 per share.
The Chicago-based drugmaker's shares rose as much as 5.6% to hit an all-time high of $186.11 before giving back some gains. They were up about 4% at $183.25 by midday. Sales of AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV)'s flagship arthritis drug Humira, once the world's top-selling medicine, have been declining with the introduction to the U.S. market of multiple biosimilar versions of the therapy. There are now 10 of the close copies available in the U.S.
Humira's global sales fell nearly 30% to $2.81 billion in the second quarter, but still topped analysts' estimate of $2.76 billion, according to LSEG data.
The loss of exclusivity has forced AbbVie to reduce the drug's net price to maintain market share with industry middlemen known as pharmacy benefit managers that determine much patient access to prescription drugs.
Humira has so far held on to more than 80% of patients this year. "It will certainly be lower next year," AbbVie Chief Commercial Officer Jeffrey Stewart said on a call to discuss the company's results.
AbbVie in February said it expects a 36% decline in U.S. Humira sales this year.
The drugmaker and investors have focused on newer immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq to offset the Humira sales erosion. Skyrizi, which treats psoriasis and related arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, recorded global sales of $2.73 billion, beating expectations of $2.59 billion. Rinvoq, approved for similar conditions as well as rheumatoid arthritis, recorded sales of $1.43 billion, topping Wall Street estimates of $1.36 billion.
The company said it now expects Skyrizi sales of $11 billion this year, and for Rinvoq to generate $5.7 billion, $300 million and $100 million more, respectively than its prior forecasts.
Skyrizi's total prescription share in the U.S. biologic market for psoriasis patients has reached around 38%, the company said.
The strong results show "the command AbbVie has over its commercial business and their impressive ability to guide through" the loss of exclusivity for Humira, BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman said in a note.
AbbVie is also facing pressure on its big-selling cancer drug Imbruvica, which was selected as one of the 10 medicines subject to the first-ever price negotiations by U.S. Medicare insurance plans.
Imbruvica sales fell 8% to $833 million in the second quarter, but still beat estimates of $789 million.
AbbVie Chief Scientific Officer Roopal Thakkar said the company was discontinuing development of an experimental Alzheimer's drug as a standalone antibody after finding it was unlikely to be "sufficiently differentiated" from approved therapies.
Overall sales for the quarter were $14.46 billion, beating estimates of $14.03 billion. On an adjusted basis, AbbVie earned $2.65 per share, beating estimates by 8 cents.