Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK) reported higher-than-expected Q2 earnings and revenue on strong sales of its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda. Merck reported earnings of $4.74B in the quarter, or $1.87 a share, compared with $1.55 billion, or 61 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts on average were expecting the company to earn $1.70 a share.
Revenue in the quarter increased 28% from a year ago to $14.6 billion, topping the forecast of $13.9 billion. Most of the sales came from Merck’s top-selling drug, the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda, which came in at $5.3 billion for the quarter, higher than analyst estimates of $4.9 billion.
Sales of Merck’s COVID-19 antiviral treatment Lagevrio were $1.2 billion in the quarter, primarily from the UK and Japan. Merck raised its full-year sales forecast to $57.5 billion to $58.5 billion from its previous outlook of $56.9 billion to $58.1 billion, including a negative impact of roughly 3% due to the strong dollar. Analysts had forecast 2022 sales of $58.1 billion.
The company expects full-year earnings of between $7.25 and $7.35 per share, putting the midpoint below Wall Street estimates of $7.37 per share.
Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK) is a global healthcare solutions provider that has been working towards bringing forward medicine and vaccines for some of the world’s most challenging diseases for more than a century. They are committed to increasing health care access and continue to be at the leading edge of research. Merck has the industry’s largest immuno-oncology clinical research program. To learn more about Merck (MRK) and to track its ongoing progress please visit the Vista Partners Merck Coverage Page.
If you liked this story please consider, visiting the Atossa Therapeutics (ATOS) dedicated page at Vista Partners to learn about the Seattle-based biotech firm’s work towards finding therapeutic treatments for Breast Cancer and the Coronavirus.
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