AstraZeneca, the FTSE 100 drugmaker, reported third-quarter total revenue of $16.2 billion, up 7% at constant exchange rates, and core earnings per share of $2.79, up 19%.
Core earnings strip out items such as amortisation of acquired intangibles, restructuring costs and legal settlements.
Reported earnings per share rose 26% to $2.02, with operating profit up 26% to $4.4 billion.
For the nine months, total revenue rose 7% to $46.9 billion and core earnings per share climbed 14% to $8.00.
Oncology, the largest division, grew 17% in the quarter to $7.8 billion, driven by Imfinzi, a cancer immunotherapy, and Enhertu, a breast cancer drug.
Imfinzi sales rose 26% to $2.0 billion, while Enhertu, which AstraZeneca sells with Daiichi Sankyo of Japan, rose 35% to $969 million.
Rare disease sales rose 10% to $2.6 billion, led by Ultomiris, a treatment for blood disorders.
The company said double-digit growth in those areas offset the loss of patent protection on Farxiga and Brilinta, and volume-based procurement in China, where the government buys drugs in bulk at low prices.
Farxiga, a diabetes and heart drug, saw sales fall 25% to $1.6 billion in the quarter after generics launched in the US.
Cardiovascular, renal and metabolism revenue fell 20% in the quarter.
Revenue in the US rose 5%, while China grew 3% and Europe 12%.
AstraZeneca kept its full-year guidance for mid-to-high single-digit revenue growth and low double-digit core earnings growth.
It also said it intends to raise the annual dividend to $3.30 per share.
Pipeline
Pascal Soriot, the chief executive, said the company had reported 12 positive Phase III readouts, with combined peak annual sales potential well above $10 billion.
Phase III trials are the final stage of testing before a drug seeks approval.
There were setbacks: the SERENA-4 trial of Etcamah, a breast cancer drug, missed its main goal, and AstraZeneca stopped trials of volrustomig in lung cancer and Ultomiris in kidney transplants.
Wainua also failed its main test in heart patients with a rare protein disease.
Deals and costs
AstraZeneca completed a $2 billion investment in Summit Therapeutics, giving it about 12% of the US biotech company.
It also launched a restructuring programme expected to cost up to $2 billion and deliver $1.5 billion of annual savings, with activity largely finished by the end of 2029.
Net debt rose $2.5 billion since December to $25.8 billion.
A Delaware court entered a $392 million judgment against AstraZeneca in a dispute over milestone payments tied to its 2020 purchase of Syntimmune, and the company said it intends to appeal.
