Bayer shares climbed 5.6% in early European trading on Tuesday, as the German group lifted its full-year earnings guidance, with a recovery in its pharmaceutical division easing pressure on its agriculture and consumer health units.
Bayer now expects full-year EBITDA, adjusted for currency swings and special items, of between 9.8 billion and 10.3 billion euros ($10.96 billion to $11.52 billion), up from a previous range of 9.6 billion to 10.1 billion euros.
The company also raised its full-year forecasts for cash flow and net debt. With cash outflows set to be lower than previously estimated, net debt at year-end is now expected to fall to 28 billion to 29 billion euros, compared with an earlier target of 29 billion to 30 billion euros.
For the pharmaceutical division, the adjusted EBITDA margin for the full year of 2026 was lifted to 25% to 27% from a prior 23% to 25%.
Stripping out currency effects and portfolio changes, quarterly sales in the pharmaceutical division rose 6.4% year on year, with sales of prostate cancer drug Nubeqa and kidney and heart treatment Kerendia jumping 58% and 65% respectively.
The two medicines also drove divisional profitability, with adjusted EBITDA for the pharmaceutical unit surging 24% to 1.29 billion euros.
Group-wide third-quarter sales reached 10.05 billion euros, up 4.1% year on year. The analyst consensus compiled by Vara Research stood at 9.93 billion euros.
Hit by asset impairments and litigation costs, Bayer's net loss for the quarter narrowed to 672 million euros, compared with a net loss of 963 million euros a year earlier.
Excluding special items, EBITDA rose 6.9% year on year to 1.615 billion euros, above the market consensus of 1.4 billion euros.
The pharmaceutical division had been under pressure from patent expirations on blood thinner Xarelto and eye drug Eylea. The company has been working to turn the business around, while also seeking to resolve a series of US lawsuits over its Roundup weedkiller and reduce its debt load.
Bayer said strong demand for Nubeqa and Kerendia drove both revenue and profit growth in the pharmaceutical division. The improved earnings outlook for the unit prompted the group to raise its underlying profit guidance.
Chief Executive Bill Anderson said: "The growth curve of the pharmaceutical business has reached a turning point, and we are starting to see the situation improve."
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