(Reuters) – French drugmaker Sanofi forecast moderate earnings growth this year on Friday, as sustained surge in demand for its bestselling drug Dupixent would be partly offset by generic competition for established multiple sclerosis pill Aubagio.
The Paris-headquartered company said it expected 2023 adjusted earnings per share to grow by a “low single digit” percentage, not taking into account an expected negative currency impact of between 3.5% and 4.5%.
It also reported a 20.7% rise in fourth-quarter business operating income, or adjusted earnings before interest and tax, to 2.72 billion euros ($2.96 billion), edging past an average analyst estimate of 2.69 billion euros posted on the company’s website.
Revenue from eczema and asthma drug Dupixent, jointly developed with Regeneron, surged 42% to 2.4 billion euros during the quarter ended Dec. 31, slightly above a consensus of 2.37 billion euros.
The company said its ambition was to reach Dupixent sales of 10 billion euros this year, up more than 20% from 8.29 billion euros in 2022.
($1 = 0.9180 euros)
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
