Novartis Expected to Take Earnings Hit From Patent Expirations -- Earnings Preview

Dow Jones04-27

By Adria Calatayud

Novartis is scheduled to report results for the first quarter on Tuesday. Here is what you need to know:

SALES FORECAST: Analysts expect the Swiss drugmaker to report first-quarter net sales of $13.34 billion, according to consensus estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. For the first quarter of 2025, the company reported net sales of $13.23 billion.

CORE OPERATING PROFIT FORECAST: Novartis is expected to report a quarterly core operating profit--one of its preferred metrics, which strips out exceptional items--of $5.1 billion, according to the same consensus. The company reported a core operating profit of $5.575 billion for last year's first quarter.

Shares in Novartis climbed 10% during the first quarter, but have given up some of the gains in April. The stock rose 3.7% since the start of the year through Friday's close.

WHAT TO WATCH

--GUIDANCE: Novartis has flagged with its guidance that it expects weakness in the first half of the year, analysts at UBS wrote in a note to clients. The company is facing competition from generic drugs for its heart drug Entresto, leukemia treatment Tasigna, and blood-platelet booster Promacta. It has signaled both net sales and core earnings are expected to fall in the first half. For the year as a whole, Novartis expects net sales growth in the low single digit percentage range at constant currency, and a decline in core operating profit of low single digits. The company's guidance should remain intact after the first-quarter results, analysts at J.P. Morgan said.

--PIPELINE: Investors will want to know what updates Novartis has in the pipeline for later this year, UBS analysts said. UBS cited drug candidates such as remibrutinib in multiple sclerosis, pelacarsen for cardiovascular risk reduction and del-desiran in myotonic dystrophy type 1, a muscle condition. In addition to the drug pipeline, any updates on the trajectory of recently launched drugs or those that have been approved for new indications might be in focus, analysts at Bank of America said, citing Kisqali for breast cancer, Scemblix for leukemia, Pluvicto for prostate cancer and Rhapsido for hives.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 27, 2026 07:42 ET (11:42 GMT)

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Novartis Expected to Take Earnings Hit From Patent Expirations -- Earnings Preview

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