BIG PHARMA EARNINGS WATCH: ABBVIE, ROCHE, GILEAD, MERCK AND BRISTOL MYERS SQUIBB

Merck CEO Acknowledges Americans Paying Highest Drug Prices in the World as Big Pharma Giant Actively Games Patent System to Extend Monopoly Pricing on Blockbuster Cancer Drug

Pharmaceutical giants AbbVie, Roche, Gilead, Merck and Bristol Myers Squibb recently reported Q1 earnings that all beat Wall Street analysts’ expectations as every one of these brand name drug companies have continued hiking prices on their blockbuster prescription drugs.

During Merck’s earnings call, a Guggenheim Securities analyst asked a question about the drug price differentiations in the United States compared to other countries. In response, Chairman and CEO Rob Davis appeared to acknowledge Big Pharma charges Americans drug prices that are too high. “I don’t want to speculate on what the administration might do specifically, but I would say generally, we recognize, I recognize, and I think the industry recognizes that the price differential that exists between the United States and the rest of the world for our innovative medicines needs to be addressed.”

Merck’s anti-competitive patent abuse strategy designed to extend market exclusivity on blockbuster cancer treatment Keytruda provides a case study in why drug prices are too high in the U.S. Merck filed for the approval and launch of a subcutaneous version of Keytruda to offset the loss of its exclusivity in 2028 despite the new intake method providing no notable clinical benefits for patients nor representing true innovation. The move will allow Merck to further block competition from more affordable alternatives while keeping the price of Keytruda high. 

According to research from the Initiative for Medicines, Access, and Knowledge (I-MAK), Merck has already filed 129 patent applications on Keytruda – more than half of which were filed after the drug’s initial approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Big Pharma company has been granted 53 patents on this one drug. I-MAK estimates that Americans will spend at least $137 billion on Keytruda while the drug faces no competition due to its extended exclusivity that already totals more than eight years — without reflecting the added impact of the Big Pharma giant’s latest reformulation patent strategy.

Get the full recap of AbbVie, Roche, Gilead, Merck and Bristol Myers Squibb’s strong earnings fueled by anti-competitive practices and price hikes here:

AbbVie

• AbbVie’s fourth quarter earnings exceeded Wall Street expectations for the third quarter in a row.
• The company saw sales of $13.34 billion for the quarter.
• The blockbuster arthritis drug Humira brought in $1.12 billion in sales.
• Arthritis drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq saw revenue of $3.43 billion and $1.72 billion, respectively, beating Wall Street Analysts’ expectations.
• The Big Pharma company raised its 2025 profit forecast after the strong sales of immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq.

Roche

• Roche surpassed Wall Street analysts’ expectations for Q1.
• The Big Pharma Giant’s revenue grew 7.2 percent in the first quarter to $18.6 billion.
• In Q1, sales were up by seven percent, driven by breast cancer drug Phesgo, eye drug Vabysmo, allergy treatment Xolair and asthma treatment Dupixent.

Gilead

• Gilead reported Q1 earnings that topped Wall Street analysts’ expectations.
• Gilead’s HIV therapy Biktarvy saw $3.15 billion in sales, growing seven percent year-over-year.
• The company projects sales for 2025 in the range of $28.2 billion to $28.6 billion.  

Merck

• Global pharmaceutical giant Merck reported first quarter revenue that beat Wall Street’s expectations.
• In Q1, the drug company reported sales of $15.5 billion, exceeding analysts’ forecasts of $15.3 billion.  
• Sales of its HPV prevention drug, Gardasil, were $1.3 billion, in line with analyst expectations, while sales of cancer immunotherapy drug, Keytruda, rose four percent to $7.2 billion.

Bristol Myers Squibb

• Bristol Myers Squibb saw earnings that beat Wall Street analysts’ expectations, reporting $11.2 billion in revenue for Q1, hiking its revenue and profit guidance for the year.
• Sales for cancer drug Opdivo came in at $2.27 billion in Q1, a year-over-year change of nine percent.
• Bristol Myers Squibb’s immunotherapy drug, Yervoy, reported sales of $624 million, more than $100 million higher than analysts’ forecast in the first quarter.
• The Big Pharma giant boosted its 2025 revenue guidance from $45.8 billion to $46.8 billion, up from their previous forecast of $45.5 billion.

These strong Q1 earnings from these Big Pharma giants follow their continued practice of continued price hikes and patent abuses on their brand name drugs.

AbbVie

• To date in 2025, AbbVie has already hiked prices on 16 prescription drugs, including Skyrizi by 5.7 percent and Rinvoq by five percent.
• AbbVie increased prices on 19 prescription drugs in 2024, including a 5.8 percent price increase on Skyrizi and five percent increase on Rinvoq.
• AbbVie hiked prices on 40 prescription drugs in January 2023, including eight percent increases each on the company’s blockbuster autoimmune drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq.
• In 2022, AbbVie increased prices on more than 40 prescription drugs.

Roche

• As its sales have climbed, Roche has repeatedly hiked prices on prescription products in its portfolio. Roche has increased prices on 26 prescription drugs so far in 2025, including Ocrevus by 4.7 percent, Vabysmo by 2.5 percent and Xolair by 2.2 percent.
• Last year, the Big Pharma company increased prices on 35 prescription drugs.
• In 2023, Roche increased prices on at least 22 prescription drugs in its portfolio.
• A report released in late 2019 found that Roche’s price hikes on the popular drug Rituxan were not supported by innovation or improvements and cost U.S. taxpayers $806 million.

 Gilead

• Gilead has hiked prices on 11 prescription drugs so far in 2025 at an average rate of 5.9 percent.  
• Gilead increased prices on at least 12 prescription drugs in 2024, including HIV drug Biktarvy by 4.9 percent.
• Gilead raised prices on at least 12 prescription drugs in 2023, including best-selling HIV drug Biktarvy by 5.9 percent.
• The brand-name drug maker hiked prices on 11 medications in 2022.

Merck

• To date, Merck has increased the cost of 17 of their prescription drugs.
• Merck hiked prices on 21 prescription products in its portfolio in January 2024, including price hikes on 20 drugs outpacing the rate of inflation.
• Merck kicked off 2023 by raising prices on more than 20 prescription drugs, including blockbuster diabetes medicines Januvia and Janumet by 4.9 percent each.
• In December 2022, Merck announced plans to seek new patents on Keytruda to expand its existing patent thicket on the drug and further extend its monopoly power by blocking competition.

Bristol Myers Squibb

• Bristol Myers Squibb started the year by hiking prices of 10 prescription drugs, including blood thinner drug Eliquis and cancer drug Opdivo by two percent.
• The Big Pharma giant kicked off 2024 by increasing prices on more than 10 prescription drugs, including a six percent increase on Eliquis.
• In 2023, the pharmaceutical giant kick started the year by raising prices on 10 prescription drugs, including blockbuster blood thinner Eliquis by six percent.
• Bristol Myers Squibb began 2022 by hiking prices on nine prescription drugs, including two key cancer drugs, Opdivo and Yervoy, as well as blockbuster blood thinner drug Eliquis.

Stay tuned as we continue to monitor first quarter earnings calls from brand name drug companies in the coming weeks.

Read more on Q1 earnings from Johnson & Johnson HERE.
Read more about Merck’s anti-competitive patent abuse strategy for Keytruda HERE.

Read more about Big Pharma’s false innovation rhetoric HERE.

Learn more about solutions to lower prescription drug prices and hold Big Pharma accountable HERE