Merck’s stock jumped 3% to about $130 during Thursday morning trading after the New Jersey-based pharmaceutical company reported higher than expected sales of its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda.
Sales of Keytruda soared 20% in the first quarter of the year to $6.9 billion, compared with $5.8 billion in the same period last year. It outperformed Wall Street analysts’ expectations of $6.7 billion, based on a consensus estimate from analysts surveyed by FactSet. Overall, the pharma company’s sales reached $15.8 billion, beating analysts’ expectations of $15.2 billion.
The U.S. Food and Drug first approved Keytruda in 2014 to treat melanoma. Since then, it has received approval to treat several types of cancers including lung cancer and carcinoma. The pharma company is now preparing for its patent on the drug to expire in 2028.
“We drove strong growth across key therapeutic areas, executed strategic business development, and in the U.S., we are now launching Winrevair, a significant new product in the cardiometabolic space for adults with pulmonary arterial hypertension, a progressive and debilitating disease,” said Merck CEO Robert M. Davis in a statement. “We have important opportunities ahead of us across all areas of our business, and we are highly focused on realizing them.”
The FDA approved Winrevair in March for adults who have high blood pressure in the arteries of the lungs. About 1% of the global population has this condition.
Merck’s first quarter, by the digits
Merck’s net income soared 69% in the three months ending March 31, to $4.8 billion, from $2.8 billion in the same period last year.
The company’s total revenue rose 9% year over year to $15.7 billion in its first quarter, from $14.5 billion.
Merck’s earnings per share came to $2.07, beating analysts’ estimates of $1.90, according to FactSet.