Net sales rose 3% in dollars to $14.4 billion, beating estimates, while core operating profit held flat at $5.94 billion
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Novartis reported second-quarter net sales of $14.4 billion on Tuesday, up 3% in dollar terms and 1% in constant currencies, as strong demand for cancer and multiple sclerosis treatments helped the Swiss drugmaker return to sales growth despite a steep drop in its top-selling heart drug.
Core operating income — the company's preferred profit measure, which strips out special items — came in flat year-over-year at $5.94 billion. Analyst expectations had placed that figure at around $5.31 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. Net income fell 19% to $3.26 billion, weighed down by higher income taxes and interest expense.
The growth was driven by a cluster of fast-expanding medicines. Breast cancer drug Kisqali posted sales of $1.7 billion, up 43% in constant currencies, while leukemia treatment Scemblix rose 89% to $562 million. Multiple sclerosis drug Kesimpta grew 32% to $1.42 billion, and prostate cancer treatment Pluvicto climbed 43% to $651 million.
Offsetting those gains was a sharp deterioration in Entresto, the heart failure drug that had been Novartis's top revenue generator. Entresto sales fell 50% in the quarter to $1.18 billion, hurt by generic competition in the United States, according to Yahoo News. The drug is set to lose patent exclusivity in Europe beginning in November, though Novartis said it expects the sales decline to be less steep in the second half of the year. Platelet-booster Promacta and leukemia treatment Tasigna also faced significant generic erosion, falling 64% and 57%, respectively.
Novartis reaffirmed its full-year 2026 guidance, forecasting low single-digit net sales growth and a low single-digit decline in core operating income in constant currencies.
Chief Executive Officer Vas Narasimhan said the company is pursuing further acquisitions to shore up its pipeline. Novartis plans to focus on smaller deals while remaining open to larger transactions, Narasimhan said on a call with reporters. In July, Novartis agreed to acquire Myricx Bio, a biotechnology company developing antibody-drug conjugates targeting cancer, the company said. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2026.
The company also flagged several pipeline milestones in the quarter. Regulators in Europe and Japan approved Rhapsido for chronic spontaneous urticaria, while the European Commission approved Itvisma as a gene replacement therapy for a broad population of patients with spinal muscular atrophy. Novartis also submitted a regulatory application to the FDA seeking accelerated approval of del-zota for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Novartis stock rose 1.9% in European afternoon trading Tuesday.
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