On Thursday, AstraZeneca reported a significant increase in sales as it began to profit from its coronavirus vaccine for the first time.
At constant exchange rates, the company’s full-year revenue was $37.4 billion, up 38 percent over the previous year. The company benefited from $4 billion in sales of its COVID-19 vaccine, which was developed in collaboration with the University of Oxford.
Despite higher revenue, AstraZeneca reported a pre-tax loss of $265 million due to costs associated with the acquisition of Alexion Pharmaceuticals in the United States and new medication development.
Following an agreement with Oxford, the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker announced in November that it will begin to make a “modest” profit from the COVID-19 shot, which it had previously provided “at cost” — roughly $2 to $3. Other COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers, such as Pfizer and Moderna, have profited handsomely from their products all along.
Revenue increased by over 50% to a record $9.9 billion in the three months ending in September, according to the business. Sales of more than $1 billion in COVID-19 vaccines contributed to the increase, as did the inclusion for the first time of $1.3 billion in revenue from its rare disease business unit following the recent acquisition of Alexion.
In 2022, AstraZeneca expects total group sales to climb by a “high teens percentage,” but COVID-19 revenues to fall by “a low-to-mid twenties percentage,” according to the company.
“We delivered on our commitment of broad and equitable access to our COVID-19 vaccination with 2.5 billion doses released for supply around the world,” stated AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot.
“With industry-leading R&D productivity, five of our products breaking new blockbuster levels, and the purchase and integration of Alexion, AstraZeneca maintained on its strong growth trajectory in 2021,” he said.
Soriot said that the company’s dividend would be increased by ten cents to $2.90 per share, the first rise in a decade.
On Thursday morning, AstraZeneca shares were trading roughly 3% higher at 8.62 pounds ($11.68) on the London Stock Exchange.
