Another analyst cut expectations for Pfizer on Friday after the pharma heavyweight issued a disappointing 2024 outlook early this week. Pfizer stock is now trading at its lowest point in a decade.
That makes 12 analysts since Wednesday to have reduced their price targets on Pfizer stock, according to FactSet. That was the day Pfizer said it expects $58.5 billion to $61.5 billion in sales next year, undercutting analysts' expectations for $62.66 billion. The company also said to expect $2.05 to $2.25 in adjusted earnings per share, below projections for $3.13.
Leerink Partners analyst David Risinger joined the fray on Friday, lowering his target on shares to 27 from 33 while also "significantly" trimming earnings per share estimates.
Though there could be upside to 2024 earnings potential, "we continue to view long-term prospects constrained by patent expirations," he said in a report.
Pfizer stock rose 1.9% to close at 26.63 on today's stock market. But shares, overall, continue declining. MarketSmith.com shows Pfizer stock has closed lower each month for the past nine months. A representative of Pfizer didn't immediately return a request for comment from Investor's Business Daily.
Demand Decline Slams Pfizer Stock
The guidance comes amid declining demand for Covid vaccines and treatments. Pfizer and its partner, BioNTech, have launched an updated version of their Covid vaccine that targets the XBB.1.5 subvariant of omicron.
But that strain is no longer dominant in the U.S. and global sales of that shot, Comirnaty, plummeted 70% in the third quarter to $1.31 billion, shy of projections for $1.53 billion.
Moderna is facing the same struggle for its rival messenger RNA-based vaccine, Spikevax. In the same quarter, sales skidded almost 44% to $1.76 billion. That beat forecasts for $1.35 billion, however. Novavax, which makes a protein-based vaccine, saw sales of its shot almost completely vanish, falling to $2.2 million and missing projections for $10.1 million.
For 2024, Pfizer expects $5 billion in sales of Comirnaty and $3 billion from Paxlovid, its antiviral pill.
"This guidance comes in significantly lower than consensus fiscal year 2024 revenues (Comirnaty at $8 billion and Paxlovid at $4.4 billion)," Leerink Partners analyst Mani Foroohar said in a recent note.
Light Seagen Sales Guidance
Pfizer also projects $3.1 billion in sales of Seagen's products. The company finished its acquisition of the cancer-focused biotech on Thursday. Seagen makes antibody drug conjugates, or ADCs. These drugs send toxic chemicals directly to tumors. In theory, that limits damage to nearby healthy tissue.
But analysts projected a bigger $3.25 billion in sales of Seagen's products, Risinger said. In addition to the price target cut, he downgraded Pfizer stock to an underperform rating from market perform.
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