Skyrizi and Rinvoq made nearly $7 billion combined, almost half of the company’s income for the quarter alone.
AbbVie’s two-headed immune blocking behemoth continues to grow, with sales of Skyrizi up 46% and Rinvoq up 34% year-over-year.
For the quarter, Skyrizi brought in $4.7 billion, while Rinvoq collected $2.2 billion. The company announced the sales results in a third quarter earnings report Friday morning.
The pair of drugs are indicated for a suite of immune-mediated conditions, with Skyrizi treating plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and Rinvoq covering rheumatoid arthritis, atopic dermatitis and ankylosing spondylitis. Taken together, the pair of drugs are on track to beat the peak sales of AbbVie’s immune-blocking predecessor blockbuster, Humira, which peaked at $21 billion in total sales for 2022.
Sales of Humira, which is now without patent protection, dropped 55% to a scant $993 million for the quarter.
Skyrizi and Rinvoq together are forming something of a “one-two punch,” as CEO Robert Michael described it on the call. Earlier this month, the FDA approved an expanded label for Rinvoq in treating ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease that allows its use in patients who are ineligible for a TNF-blocker like Skyrizi, essentially funneling patients that couldn’t take one of the company’s drugs towards another.
AbbVie’s pipeline-in-a-product approach is continuing to widen, with Rinvoq also being tested in conditions like alopecia areata, where data from a Phase III trial in July showed 40% of patients receiving Rinvoq attaining 80% scalp coverage. In treating another immune-mediated condition, vitiligo, the company yesterday announced that two Phase III trials testing Rinvoq hit their primary endpoints of 50% reduction of vitiligo coverage on patients’ bodies and 75% reduction on the face.
Besides the immune portfolio, questions from analysts on the earnings call centered around M&A activities, with analysts wondering if AbbVie might pursue more external business development. The company shelled out $2.1 billion in June for Capstan and its CAR T business, $2 billion for Ichnos Glenmark’s anti-myeloma antibody in July and Gilgamesh’s lead psychedelic drug for $1.2 billion in August.
AbbVie’s leadership suggested that it might be cooling on pursuing acquisitions, at least in the late-stage. “We certainly have the financial wherewithal to pursue late-stage opportunities,” Michael said, “but that’s not really a need, given that our current portfolio provides a clear line of sight to growth into the next decade.”
“If you look at the more than 30 deals we’ve executed over the last 18-plus months, there’s been a nice mix between immunology, oncology, neuroscience,” Michael added.
Like last quarter, AbbVie’s overall earnings were extremely sunny, with net revenues at $15.8 billion for the quarter, up 9.1% year-over-year. The company’s immunology portfolio made up $7.9 billion of that, with an 11.2% increase for the quarter.
