Despite the continued decline of Pfizer’s COVID-19 products, shares stayed stable on Tuesday morning after the New York pharma reported a first quarter beat, which was led by Eliquis and Ibrance.
The blood thinner Eliquis and breast cancer therapy Ibrance helped bring home a first quarter beat for Pfizer, while the COVID-19 portfolio of Comirnaty and Paxlovid continued a downward slide. But the New York pharma maintained its current guidance, which kept the share price stable in early morning trading on Tuesday.
Pfizer still expects revenue to fall in the range of $59.5 to 62.5 billion for 2026. The first quarter helped chip away at that figure with $14.5 billion, or a 2% increase from the same period a year earlier.
Had the COVID-19 products been excluded, revenue would have grown 7%, Pfizer said in a Tuesday morning press release. These two products were “a general drag on the quarter,” BMO Capital Markets wrote in a Tuesday note.
“Strong commercial quarter from non-COVID products continues to show momentum for the business, but no guidance change may temper investor response,” the firm said.
Indeed, Pfizer shares were stable in early morning trading at $26.55, less than a percent higher than Monday’s close of $26.30.
Overall, analysts were pleased by the beat, which landed about 4% above consensus. BMO Capital Markets called the performance of Padcev a “bright spot,” as the bladder cancer therapy landed 10% above consensus with sales of $591 million worldwide. This was a 39% increase over the first quarter of 2025.
Ibrance was the top seller in Pfizer’s cancer portfolio with over $1 billion worldwide, a 3% increase. Pfizer’s top-selling asset overall, though, was the oral blood thinner Eliquis, which raked in $2.16 billion, or 13% more than the same period the year before.
Leerink Partners was “bullish” on the recent announcement that Pfizer has settled patent litigation surrounding Vyndamax, allowing the entry of generic rivals later than expected. The transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) drug will now see copies emerge in mid-2031, instead of 2028 as previously expected.
But Pfizer still has plenty of patent-related issues for its other products, Guggenheim said.
“The near-term story remains challenging for Pfizer given the multiple large patent expiration the company is facing between now and 2028, but we believe continued positive progress both commercially and with the pipeline should help increase investor interest in the name going forward,” the firm wrote on Tuesday morning.
Pfizer’s leadership will host a conference call at 10 a.m. ET on Tuesday. Given the patent situation, Guggenheim plans to listen carefully for any pipeline updates that could speak to future growth opportunities.
