Novartis says buoyed by new treatments in second quarter / Photo: GABRIEL MONNET - AFP
Novartis says buoyed by new treatments in second quarter
Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Novartis said Tuesday that group sales exceeded expectations in the second quarter of 2026, on the back of a range of new products.
Novartis said in a statement that sales in the period from April to June rose by three percent to $14.4 billion (12.6 billion euros), compared with the second quarter of 2025.
That was slightly higher than the $14 billion forecast by analysts polled by Swiss agency AWP.
The Basel-based group is facing the expiry of patents for a number of its drugs, including Entresto, a flagship treatment for heart failure.
In 2025, Entresto alone generated annual sales of $7.7 billion, even though its sales had already fallen sharply in the fourth quarter after its patent expired in the United States in July of that year.
Rhapsido, a treatment for chronic rashes that was approved in the US last September and then in the European Union at the end of April, has already generated $64 million in sales, Novartis said.
Net profit fell by 19 percent to $3.2 billion, hit by higher interest and tax expenses, the group explained.
Novartis confirmed its targets for 2026 and said it is still aiming for "low single-digit" sales growth for the whole year.
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B.Lenz--BVZ
