Producer | Sohu Health
Author | Zhou Yichuan
Editor | Yuan Yue
< p data-track="4">According to Fierce Pharma, a team of analysts pointed out that Pfizer’s new crown vaccine Comirnaty and antiviral drug Paxlovid will generate billions of dollars in revenue in 2022, but the company’s revenue in the first quarter of this year may be Lower than expected.
At the beginning of this year, Pfizer set a target of $54 billion for combined vaccine and oral drug sales in 2022, on top of last year’s $37 billion in vaccine sales. The company plans to produce 6 million courses of oral medicine in the first quarter, 30 million doses in the first half, and eventually 120 million for the full year.
The reality is not as smooth as planned. The Louise Chen team of Cantor Fitzgerald Company pointed out in the report that the market generally expects Paxlovid’s sales in the United States to be 1.9 billion US dollars in the first quarter. To achieve this sales target, Pfizer needs to provide 3.66 million treatments. But according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website, 1.4 million courses have been dispensed since the drug was approved, and 143,000 have been dispensed at the end of last year, equivalent to 1.2 million in the first quarter, with sales of about $630 million.
In regions outside the United States, the original market estimates estimated that Pfizer’s sales in the first quarter would be US$1.4 billion, then Pfizer would distribute 4 million doses of treatment overseas to achieve the target. Last quarter, Pfizer expected sales outside the U.S. to be about $350 million in the first quarter.
In addition, the first-quarter sales of the vaccine in the United States were expected to be $2 billion, but data from the CDC website shows that this amount is actually not achieved. Vaccine distributions in the fourth quarter of 2021 were 103 million doses, matching Pfizer’s reported $2.2 billion in sales; but only 47 million doses were distributed in the first quarter, and sales fell by half.
Currently, less than half of the projected doses are being distributed in the United States and Europe, a goal that will require continued efforts in drug production and supply.
Currently, the drug has been ordered in the UK and several EU countries. The British Department of Health and Social Services also issued a statement saying that Paxlovid reduces the risk of hospitalization or death by 88% and can be used directly in high-risk patients. While vaccines remain the first line of defense, antiviral drugs target the virus in its early stages, preventing it from progressing to more severe or even critical symptoms. The UK has ordered more than 4.98 million courses of the drug, more than any other European country per capita.
In addition, the latest news from Pfizer indicates that the company is committed to producing a vaccine that can provide year-round protection against not only Omicron, but other known variants . At present, the so-called “vaccine fatigue” has occurred in many areas, and the vaccination rate is difficult to increase. With a booster shot every year, like the flu shot, easier to administer and for others to comply with, it will add more to the public health solution.
References:
1. fiercepharma
High- flying Pfizer may disappoint on Comirnaty and Paxlovid sales in Q1, analyst warns
https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/pfizers-first-quarter-haul-could- come-light-analysts-flag-overambitious-paxlovid-and
2.medicalxpress
Pfizer eyes COVID vaccine for all variants before 2023
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04-pfizer-eyes-covid-vaccine-variants.html