Roche with good start in 2014
Continued growth due to recently launched medicines
Group sales up 5% at constant exchange rates, -1% in Swiss francs
Pharma sales up 4%1 with continued growth of Avastin, MabThera/Rituxan, Actemra/RoActemra and Herceptin compensating for expected decline in Xeloda sales
Strong uptake of recently launched products Perjeta and Kadcyla for HER2 positive breast cancer
Diagnostics Division sales up 7%; Professional Diagnostics continues to outperform market
Subcutaneous formulation of MabThera approved in Europe
Acquisition of IQuum strengthens Molecular Diagnostics portfolio with point of care testing
Full-year outlook confirmed
Commenting on the Group's first quarter performance, Roche CEO Severin Schwan said: "Both the Pharma and Diagnostics Divisions posted solid growth in the first quarter. I am particularly pleased with the strong uptake of our recently launched medicines Perjeta and Kadcyla for HER2-positive breast cancer. With the acquisition of IQuum, we will further strengthen our leading molecular diagnostics portfolio with tests for the point of care segment. Based on the first quarter results, I am confident we will meet our full year targets."
Strong demand for cancer medicines and clinical lab sales
Group sales rose 5% in the first quarter, driven by demand for cancer medicines (in particular the HER2 breast cancer franchise, Avastin and MabThera/Rituxan), as well as Actemra/RoActemra for rheumatoid arthritis. Sales of Xeloda, a chemotherapy drug, were lower as the product is now off patent and faces generic competition in the United States and Europe. In the Diagnostics Division, strong sales growth was driven mainly by Professional Diagnostics with demand for immunoassays in clinical laboratories.
Compared with the first quarter of 2013, many currencies weakened significantly against the Swiss franc; notably the US dollar and the Japanese yen, as well as all Latin American currencies. This impacted the reported Swiss franc sales growth by 6 percentage points.
Acquisition of IQuum strengthens Molecular Diagnostics portfolio
On 7 April 2014, Roche announced the acquisition of IQuum Inc., a privately held US company focused on developing point of care tests for the molecular diagnostics market. Roche will pay IQuum shareholders 275 million US dollars up front and up to 175 million US dollars in contingent product related milestones. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.
Full-year outlook confirmed
In 2014, Roche expects low-to mid-single digit growth in Group sales at constant exchange rates. Core EPS is targeted to grow ahead of sales. Roche expects to further increase its dividend.
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About Roche
Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is a leader in research-focused healthcare with combined strengths in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. Roche is the world's largest biotech company, with truly differentiated medicines in oncology, immunology, infectious diseases, ophthalmology and neuroscience. Roche is also the world leader in in vitro diagnostics and tissue-based cancer diagnostics, and a frontrunner in diabetes management. Roche's personalised healthcare strategy aims at providing medicines and diagnostics that enable tangible improvements in the health, quality of life and survival of patients. Founded in 1896, Roche has been making important contributions to global health for more than a century. Twenty-four medicines developed by Roche are included in the World Health Organisation Model Lists of Essential Medicines, among them life-saving antibiotics, antimalarials and chemotherapy.
In 2013 the Roche Group employed over 85,000 people worldwide, invested 8.7 billion Swiss francs in R&D and posted sales of 46.8 billion Swiss francs. Genentech, in the United States, is a wholly owned member of the Roche Group. Roche is the majority shareholder in Chugai Pharmaceutical, Japan. For more information, please visit.
1) Unless otherwise stated, all growth rates are in constant exchange rates (CER)
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This document contains certain forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as 'believes', 'expects', 'anticipates', 'projects', 'intends', 'should', 'seeks', 'estimates', 'future' or similar expressions or by discussion of, among other things, strategy, goals, plans or intentions. Various factors may cause actual results to differ materially in the future from those reflected in forward-looking statements contained in this document, among others: (1) pricing and product initiatives of competitors; (2) legislative and regulatory developments and economic conditions; (3) delay or inability in obtaining regulatory approvals or bringing products to market; (4) fluctuations in currency exchange rates and general financial market conditions; (5) uncertainties in the discovery, development or marketing of new products or new uses of existing products, including without limitation negative results of clinical trials or research projects, unexpected side effects of pipeline or marketed products; (6) increased government pricing pressures; (7) interruptions in production; (8) loss of or inability to obtain adequate protection for intellectual property rights; (9) litigation; (10) loss of key executives or other employees; and (11) adverse publicity and news coverage. The statement regarding earnings per share growth is not a profit forecast and should not be interpreted to mean that Roche's earnings or earnings per share for any current or future period will necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings or earnings per share of Roche.