BIG PHARMA EARNINGS WATCH: GSK, MERCK, BRISTOL MYERS SQUIBB, ELI LILLY & GILEAD

Big Pharma Companies Beat Expectations After Hiking Prices on American Patients, Tout Bullish Prospects for Egregious Pricing and Anti-Competitive Business-as-Usual with Raised Forecasts

Several pharmaceutical giants including GSK, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly and Gilead recently reported earnings for the third quarter, with all five beating Wall Street analysts’ expectations after increasing prices on more than 100 drugs combined just this year alone.

Several of the company’s also raised their earnings forecast for the year, following the strong quarterly results — the latest indication that Big Pharma is feeling bullish about maintaining its egregious pricing and anti-competitive practices that fuel blockbuster profits, despite rising bipartisan scrutiny.

Get a full recap of GSK, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly and Gilead’s strong earnings for the third quarter, and their price hikes and anti-competitive strategies on top-selling brand name products, below.

GSK

• GSK reported third quarter earnings that beat Wall Street analysts’ expectations.
• The company’s sales grew eight percent to $11.35 billion in Q3.
• GSK’s specialty medicines division reported a sales increase of 16 percent, including “double-digit growth in its respiratory, immunology and inflammation segment, oncology and HIV.”
• The company raised its sales and earnings forecast for 2025 after its specialty medicines business lifted sales in Q3.

Merck

• Merck reported third quarter earnings and revenue that beat Wall Street’s expectations.
• The company reported third-quarter revenue of $17.3 billion, up from $16.6 billion in the same quarter last year.
• The strong earnings were driven by sales of Merck’s blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda, which “topped $8 billion for the first time in a quarter.”

Bristol Myers Squibb

• Bristol Myers Squibb also reported third quarter earnings that exceeded Wall Street analysts’ expectations.
• The company reported $12.22 billion in revenue, beating expectations of $11.8 billion.
• Sales of the Big Pharma’ giant’s blockbuster cancer drug Opdivo rose seven percent to $2.53 billion.
• Sales of the company’s blood thinning drug Eliquis “jumped” 25 percent to $3.75 billion.
• Bristol Myers Squibb also raised its earnings for the quarter, now expecting full-year earnings of $47.5 billion to $48 billion.

Eli Lilly

• Eli Lilly reported strong earnings, “blow[ing] past Wall Street analyst expectations for the quarter.
• The pharmaceutical company reported revenue of $17.6 billion, compared to expectations of $16 billion.
• The Big Pharma giant’s GLP-1 drug Mounjaro delivered revenue of $6.52 billion, up 109 percent year over year, while Zepbound drove $3.59 billion in revenue in the quarter, up 184 percent year over year.
• The company raised its full-year revenue guidance to between $63 billion to $63.5 billion.

Gilead

• Gilead posted third quarter earnings that beat Wall Street analysts’ estimates.
• The company reported $7.8 billion in revenue, surpassing expectations of $7.4 billion.
• The Big Pharma giant’s HIV treatment Biktarvy brought in $3.69 billion in sales in the quarter.
• The company also raised its earnings and sales guidance for the year.

The strong earnings reports from these five Big Pharma giants follow consistent patterns of hiking prices on blockbuster drugs across their portfolios — often in tandem with strategies to undermine competition from more affordable alternatives.

GSK

• GSK has raised prices on 37 drugs so far this year, including an 8.9 percent increase on its Shingrix vaccine.
• Last year, GSK hiked prices on more than 25 prescription drugs, including its blockbuster Shingrix vaccine product by 7.9 percent and asthma drug Trelegy by three percent.
• In 2023, GSK hiked prices on more than 35 drugs, and in 2022, it increased prices on over 40 drugs.

Merck

• To date, Merck has increased the cost of 31 of their prescription drugs so far this year.
• 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 2022, Merck raised prices on 22 prescription drugs. 

Bristol Myers Squibb

• Bristol Myers Squibb has hiked prices of 17 prescription drugs so far this year, 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 kickstarted 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.

Eli Lilly

• Eli Lilly began 2025 by increasing prices on 13 prescription drugs, including blockbuster GLP-1 drug Zepbound by 2.5 percent. 
• Eli Lilly hiked prices on 10 prescription drugs in 2024, including oncology drug Verzenio by six percent, as well as blockbuster diabetes drugs Trulicity and Mounjaro by five percent and 4.5 percent, respectively.
• Eli Lilly started 2023 by raising prices on 15 prescription drugs, including blockbuster diabetes drugs Trulicity and Mounjaro, both by five percent. Eli Lilly also hiked the price of its best-selling oncology drug, Verzenio, by 5.5 percent.

Gilead

• Gilead has hiked prices on 12 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 HIV drug Biktarvy by 5.9 percent.

Read more on expectation-beating third quarter earnings from Johnson & Johnson HERE.

And stay tuned as we continue to monitor third quarter earnings calls from brand name drug companies in the coming weeks.

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