Swiss drugmaker Actelion is lifting its annual guidance after recent restructure and cost-control initiatives have placed it in better stead for the year.
The company said it now expects profit for 2012 to grow in a “mid single-digit” percentage range, after initially predicting it would stay flat from 2011, but it still expects product sales to drop in the low single-digit range for the full year.
Earlier this month, the firm announced plans for a drastic cost saving initiative under which it expects to to axe around 135 jobs, or about 5.3% of the workforce, to help turn around the decline in its business from the start of the year.
“I am very pleased that our efforts to control costs are already having an impact on profitability,” said chief executive Jean-Paul Clozel.
“On the same 2012 basis and unforeseen events excluded, we also expect to maintain core earnings in 2013 at this higher forecasted 2012 level (in local currencies) and expect to return to single-digit growth in 2014 and double-digit growth by 2015,” added the firm’s chief financial officer Andrew Oakley.
First-half results
Product sales for the first half of 2012 came in at 861.8 million Swiss francs, marking a decrease of 3% in local currencies.
Tracleer (bosentan) sales dropped 4% to 752.4 million Swiss francs, because of increased competition in the US from Gilead’s Letairis (ambrisentan) and price cuts elsewhere, and Ventavis (iloprost) dropped 8% to 56.1 million Swiss francs.
On the plus side, Veletri (epoprostenol for injection) sales jumped to 11.4 million Swiss Francs from 6.1 million Swiss Francs a year ago, while Zavesca (miglustat) sales grew 20% to 40.6 million Swiss francs, driven predominantly by strong patient demand in Niemann Pick Type-C indication.
Net income for the period was 173.7 million Swiss Francs, compared to a loss of 262.3 million Swiss Francs in the first six months of 2011.
