Covid pandemic pushes Pfizer’s 2022 revenue to $100 billion

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic propelled pharmaceutical company Pfizer’s profits to a record $100 billion last year, including nearly $57 billion from its vaccine and antiviral pill Paxlovid, the company reported. company on Tuesday.

The vaccine accounted for $37.8 billion, up just 3% from 2021, of Pfizer’s total sales as vaccine demand slowed. But sales of its blockbuster antiviral treatment have offset that slowdown, hitting $18.9 billion in 2022, the first full year Paxlovid was on the market.

Pfizer’s combined sales of its Covid vaccine and antiviral treatment generated more revenue last year than total sales in 2019, before the pandemic became a global crisis that killed more than 6.8 million people and disrupted global markets. These results will not be repeated this year.

Pfizer has told investors it expects revenue to decline by up to 33% in 2023 to between $67 billion and $71 billion as the world emerges from the pandemic and demand for its blockbuster drugs Covid is slowing down.

Covid vaccine sales are expected to drop 64% this year to $13.5 billion from $37.8 billion in 2022. Paxlovid sales are expected to fall 58% to $8 billion in 2023 from $18.9 billion dollars in 2022.

Pfizer also expects its earnings per share for the full year to fall by up to 50%, to between $3.25 and $3.45, from a record EPS of $6.58 in 2022.

The company’s results in the fourth quarter were broadly in line with analysts’ expectations.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla in the last quarter defined a 2030 growth plan for the company that looks beyond the pandemic. Bourla said he expects future revenue growth from RSV vaccines and drugs for migraine and ulcerative colitis, among other drugs.