Novartis beats Q4 earnings consensus as drug sales surge

By Ludwig Burger

FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Novartis on Friday posted adjusted net income well above analyst estimates as sales of established heart failure drug Entresto and newer multiple sclerosis drug Kesimpta exceeded forecasts.

Fourth-quarter net income, adjusted for special items, rose 26% to $3.93 billion, the Swiss drugmaker said in a statement, surpassing an analyst consensus of $3.64 billion, according to LSEG data.

Novartis shares jumped 3.6% to a three-month high of 97.15 francs at 0941 GMT, with investors also encouraged by the company's upbeat 2025 earnings projections.

Entresto, which will lose patent protection around the middle of this year, saw quarterly revenues jump by one third from a year earlier to a better-than-expected $2.18 billion.

Some drugs with longer-lasting potential also performed above the market view, with sales of MS drug Kesimpta up by almost 50% at $950 million. Kesimpta, which patients can administer themselves through monthly injections, competes with Roche's Ocrevus, which is given in hospitals.

Breast-cancer drug Kisqali, which the company says has peak sales potential of more than $8 billion, also saw quarterly sales advance close to 50%, to reach $902 million.

Harry Kirsch, Novartis' finance chief, told Reuters that seeing the newer drugs beat expectations "really lifts these brands to a new level".

The company predicted that 2025 operating income, adjusted for special items, would grow by a "high single to low double-digit" percentage, excluding the effect of currency swings.

That compares with a 22% increase in 2024.

"We're surprised by the guide, which we expected to come in on the conservative end given the (loss of exclusivity) the company is facing this year," Barclays analysts said in a note.

(Reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Friederike Heine and Kate Mayberry)