Cost cutting helped Biogen beat second-quarter expectations soundly even as revenue slid and sales of the drugmaker’s controversial Alzheimer’s treatment collapsed.
Aduhelm, a drug once expected to generate billions in annual sales, brought in only
Aduhelm debuted last summer as the first new treatment in nearly two decades for Alzheimer’s, a progressive neurological disease with no known cure. But it was immediately met by reluctance from some doctors to prescribe it due partly to an initial, annual price of around
The government’s Medicare program eventually imposed strict limits on who could take Aduhelm, which wiped out most of its potential U.S. market. Biogen said earlier this year it would slash most of its spending on the drug as part of a broader cost-cutting plan.
It has since turned its focus to other drugs under development. That includes lecanemab, another potential treatment for early Alzheimer’s. The
Biogen wound up cutting total costs and expenses by 40% to
Total revenue fell nearly 7% to
Net income more than doubled to
Biogen also raised its 2022 forecast Wednesday. It now expects adjusted earnings of
Analysts are forecasting earnings of
The company offered no updates Wednesday on its search for a new leader to replace CEO
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