GSK Plc has upgraded its forecast for long-term growth following a year in which specialty medicines for oncology and HIV delivered double-digit increases in sales. At the end of 2024 the company had 19 new products in Phase 3 or registration. Emma Walmsley, the chief executive, told journalists on 5 February that the company now expects to achieve more than £40 billion in sales by 2031, up from the company’s previous forecast of £38 billion. At the same time, GSK announced plans to buy back £2 billion of its shares over the next 18 months. “GSK delivered another year of excellent performance in 2024 with strong sales and core profit growth driven by accelerating momentum of our specialty medicines portfolio,” she said.
Turnover for the year was £31.4 billion, up by 3% in actual exchange rates and by 7% at constant rates. The biggest increase, at 98%, was for oncology drugs which generated £1.4 billion. But this was dwarfed by the £7.1 billion in revenue from HIV medicines, which increased by 13% on the year. Turnover for vaccines however fell by 4% to £9 billion, the result of a sharp drop in demand in the US for the respiratory syncytial virus vaccine Arexvy. This followed the decision by a government agency to give a more limited recommendation for the vaccine for people between the ages of 60 to 74 years.
The oncology sector has only three drugs, but these performed well with two, Jemperli for endometrial cancer, and Ojjaara/Omjjara for myelofibrosis, generating sales increases of more than 100%. Among the cancer drugs poised for another regulatory submission is Blenrep for multiple myeloma. Blenrep was initially given an accelerated approval by the US Food and Drug Administration, then pulled from the market in 2024, and is now ready for review again.
GSK reported an IFRS operating profit of £4 billion for 2024 for a drop of 40% in actual exchange rates and a decline of 33% at constant rates. The decline was primarily due to charges relating to the settlement of a lawsuit in the US relating the heartburn drug Zantac. The core operating results, which exclude impairments, was £9.15 billion for an increase of 11%. Spending on research and development was £6.4 billion, or 20% of turnover.
GSK also made outlays for new technologies. At the start of the year, it spent $1 billion upfront and committed $400 million in milestone payments to acquire Aiolos Bio, a biotech company with products for respiratory and inflammatory conditions. In June, it agreed to pay up to £50 million for Elsie Biotechnologies which has experimental oligonucleotide drugs for liver disease. Most recently in January, it announced plans to pay $1 billion upfront and $150 million in potential milestones to buy IDRx Inc which has an early-stage product for gastrointestinal stromal tumours.
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