Biogen BIIB reported fourth-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $3.44, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.42. Earnings rose 17% year over year on a reported basis, boosted by the company’s cost-cutting efforts.
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Total revenues came in at $2.46 billion, up 3% year over year on a reported basis and 2% on a constant-currency basis. Lower sales of Biogen’s key multiple sclerosis (MS) drugs like Tecfidera and Tysabri were partially offset by higher revenues from new drugs. Sales of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) drug, Spinraza, improved slightly in the quarter. Sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.42 billion.
More on BIIB’s Revenues
Product sales in the quarter were $1.83 billion, flat year over year. Revenues from anti-CD20 therapeutic programs rose 7% to $465.0 million. The revenues include royalties on sales of Roche’s RHHBY Ocrevus and Biogen’s share of RHHBY’s drugs, namely Rituxan, Gazyva and Lunsumio.
Contract manufacturing and royalty revenues rose 12% year over year to $130.0 million. Alzheimer’s collaboration revenues were $27 million compared with $2 million in the year-ago quarter.
Alzheimer’s collaboration revenues include Biogen’s 50% share of net product revenues and cost of sales (including royalties) from Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi (lecanemab), which has been developed in collaboration with Eisai. Eisai recorded nearly $87 million in global revenues from Leqembi sales in the fourth quarter, showing a strong improvement from $67 million in the third quarter.
Leqembi has already been launched in the United States, Japan, China and some other countries. Leqembi was launched in South Korea and approved in Mexico in the fourth quarter. In the EU, the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) rendered a positive opinion recommending the marketing approval for Leqembi in November last year. Earlier this month, Biogen and Eisai announced that the European Commission (EC) had requested the CHMP to reassess new safety data that emerged after the positive opinion and determine if any updates are needed. This may result in a delay in Leqembi’s approval in the EU.
BIIB’s Multiple Sclerosis Revenues
Biogen’s MS revenues totaled $1.07 billion, down 8% on a reported basis (9% on a constant-currency basis) due to generic competition for Tecfidera and rising competitive pressure in the MS market.
Tecfidera sales declined 0.4% to $227.8 million as multiple generic versions of the drug have been launched in the United States, North America and certain EU countries. The drug’s sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $223 million and our estimate of $206.7 million.
Vumerity recorded $176.6 million in sales, up around 13% year over year. Vumerity sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $165 million but slightly missed our model estimate of $177.8 million.
Tysabri sales declined 10.6% year over year to $415.4 million. Tysabri's sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $394 million.
Combined interferon revenues (Avonex and Plegridy) in the quarter were $236.0 million, down 15.7% due to a continued shift from the injectable platform to oral or high-efficacy therapies.
BIIB’s Rare Disease Drugs
Sales of Spinraza rose 2.1% to $421.4 million. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $416 million but missed our estimate of $430.6 million.
Rare disease drug Skyclarys, which was added with the 2023 acquisition of Reata Pharmaceuticals, generated sales of $102.2 million compared with $102.3 million in the previous quarter. Unfavorable channel inventory and some Medicare discount dynamics hurt Skyclarys’ sales in the United States.
Qalsody, which was launched in the United States for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 2023, recorded sales of $11.7 million compared with $11.1 million in the previous quarter. The drug was approved in the EU in May 2024.
BIIB’s Other Products
Zurzuvae (zuranolone), which was launched for postpartum depression in December 2023, recorded $23 million in sales, up 5% from the third-quarter levels.
Biogen has a collaboration with Sage Therapeutics SAGE for Zurzuvae. Biogen and Sage equally share profits and losses for the commercialization of Zurzuvae in the United States. At the same time, in outside U.S. markets, Biogen records product sales (excluding Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea) and pays royalties to Sage. Zurzuvae has not yet been approved in the EU.
Biosimilar revenues rose 7% year over year to $201.5 million.
BIIB’s Costs Discussion
Adjusted research and development (R&D) expenses declined 7% year over year to $528 million, driven by the company’s cost-saving initiatives under its “Fit for Growth” program and savings from the R&D portfolio prioritization efforts. Adjusted selling, general and administrative expenses rose 14% to $673 million due to costs to support the new product launches, partially offset by cost savings under the “Fit for Growth” program.
In the quarter, the collaboration profit-sharing was a net expense of around $57 million, which included nearly $51 million of net profit-sharing expenses related to Biogen’s biosimilar collaboration with Samsung Bioepis and around $6 million of net profit-sharing expenses linked to Biogen’s collaboration with Sage for marketing Zurzuvae in the United States.
BIIB’s 2024 Results
Biogen generated revenues of $9.68 billion in 2024, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.64 billion. Revenues declined 2% year over year on a reported basis, in line with the guidance of a decline in a low single-digit percentage.
Earnings were $16.47 a share, up 12% year over year. Earnings also beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $16.39 and were within the guidance range of $16.10-$16.60.
BIIB's 2025 Guidance Light
Total revenues are expected to decline by a mid-single-digit percentage in constant currency terms in 2025 from the 2024 level. A further decline in MS revenues is expected to be partially offset by higher revenues from new products.
Adjusted earnings per share are expected in the range of $15.25 to $16.25, which represents a decline from the 2024 levels. The guidance fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $16.48 per share.
The operating margin is expected to be flat in 2025. Combined R&D and SG&A costs are expected to be around $3.9 billion in 2025.
Our Take on BIIB’s Q4 Results
Biogen’s fourth-quarter results were strong as it beat estimates for both earnings and sales. Though sales of its MS drugs and Spinraza were hurt by competitive pressure, they beat estimates. While Leqembi sales (recorded by partner Eisai) showed strong sequential growth, growth of some of Biogen’s other new drugs, Skyclarys and Zurzuvae, was slow. Biogen’s EPS guidance for 2025 fell short of expectations, which explains the stock’s 2.4% dip in pre-market trading on Wednesday.
In the past year, the stock has declined 38.5% compared with the industry’s 9.5% decline.
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Biogen also announced that it is terminating the development of some pipeline candidates —BIIB113 in early Alzheimer's disease, BIIB094 in early Parkinson's disease, BIIB101 in multiple system atrophy, and BIIB143 (cemdomespib) in diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain.
Biogen’s MS drugs and Spinraza are seeing rising competitive pressure. However, Biogen believes its new products, Leqembi, Skyclarys and Zurzuvae, have the potential to revive growth. Though the Leqembi launch was slow, sales picked up in 2024 showing sequential improvement. A maintenance intravenous dosing version of Leqembi was approved by the FDA in January 2025 while a regulatory application for the subcutaneous autoinjector is under review with a decision from the FDA expected on Aug. 31, 2025.
Biogen has also strengthened its mid-to-late-stage pipeline with recent M&A deals. However, the new drugs are not yet generating enough sales to make up for the declining revenues of MS drugs and Spinraza. The regular pipeline setbacks are also a concern for investors.
BIIB’s Zacks Rank & A Key Pick
Biogen currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Biogen Inc. Price and Consensus
Biogen Inc. Price and Consensus
Biogen Inc. price-consensus-chart | Biogen Inc. Quote
A better-ranked stock is Alnylam Pharmaceuticals ALNY, with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Estimates for Alnylam’s 2025 bottom line have improved from a loss of 13 cents to earnings of 41 cents per share over the past 30 days. In the past year, Alnylam’s stock has risen 66.1%.
Alnylam beat estimates in three of the last four quarters while matching the same once, delivering a four-quarter average earnings surprise of 65.67%.
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