Roche, AbbVie Top R&D Productivity in Past 5 Years

Report shows top 11 companies as measured by value of drug approvals

Author's Avatar
Aug 23, 2021
Summary
  • Roche’s eight drug approvals accounted for nearly 46% in value
  • Novartis introduced most new treatments at 12
  • AbbVie counting on two immunology drugs to counter Humira competition
Article's Main Image

Roche Holding AG (RHHBY, Financial) sits atop the list of pharmaceutical companies getting the most out of research and development spending. That’s an important consideration for investors given new products with blockbuster potential are the lifeblood of the industry.

Using data from a recent Evaluate Advantage consulting group report, Fierce Pharma zeroed in on the recent approvals for 11 of the world’s leading drugmakers by sales. The publication analyzed the dollar value of the companies' product launches during the past five years and how the new treatments fit in with their overall product lines.

Switzerland-based Roche earned top honors with eight launches in the past five years valued at just under $100 billion, besting AbbVie Inc. (ABBV, Financial), which had five approvals worth about $76 billion. AbbVie’s new offerings accounted for 36% of the company’s dollar value of launches in the past five years, while Roche’s came in at more than 45%.

Roche has done a good job of backfilling as its three cancer megablockbusters come under pressure from biosimilars across the world. New drugs have sparked Roche’s growth since 2012, most in the field of oncology and neuroscience. Heading the list is the multiple sclerosis drug Ocrevus, which has a present value of more than $27 billion.

AbbVie’s five approvals are near the bottom of the list in terms of numbers, but the five they have packed a big punch, making up more than three-quarters of the company’s stable of marketed medications.

With the world’s best-selling drug Humira on the cusp of facing competition from biosimilars, AbbVie is counting on two immunology treatments, Rinvoq and Skyrizi, to fill the gap. The company thinks sales of the duo will double this year to a combined $4.6 billion, a figure that AbbVie predicts could hit $15 billion in 2025.

Illustrating the saying less is often more—and vice versa-- Novartis AG (NVS, Financial) had the most drug launches during the period at 12, but that performance was only good for fifth place. That’s because their value of was too low to make the cut. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY, Financial), meanwhile, introduced three products, all acquired with the Celgene buyout. The trio accounted for about 9.3% of the value from recent approvals, or nearly $15.5 billion.

Rank Company No. Approvals $Value (billions) % Overall Value
1. Roche 8 99.7 45.9
2. AbbVie 5 76.4 36.0
3. AstraZeneca (AZN, Financial) 5 45.3 27.8
4. Eli Lilly and Co. (LLY, Financial) 8 38.1 36.0
5. Novartis 12 37.6 23.0
6. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK, Financial) 7 30.2 24.5
7. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, Financial) 5 24.3 10.2
8. Pfizer Inc. (PFE, Financial) 7 17.4 11.5
9. Bristol-Myers Squibb 3 15.5 9.3
10. Sanofi (SNY, Financial) 6 6.1 4.0
11. Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK, Financial) 9 3.8 2.0

Source: Evaluate Advantage

Disclosures

I am/ we are currently short the stocks mentioned. Click for the complete disclosure