Incyte raises 2024 sales forecast for top-selling drug Jakafi

(Reuters) – Incyte beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter revenue and raised annual sales forecast for its top-selling drug on Tuesday, as uptake among patients remained strong.

Jakafi is approved for use in patients with two types of blood cancers called myelofibrosis and polycythemia vera (PV). The treatment is also approved for acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in which the donor’s bone marrow or stem cells attack the recipient’s body.

The drug’s sales have been especially driven by use among GVHD and PV patients. The company expects PV to become the largest contributor to Jakafi over time.

Incyte expects Jakafi sales in 2024 to be between $2.74 billion and $2.77 billion, compared with its previous forecast of $2.71 billion to $2.75 billion. Analysts on average expected $2.75 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Sales from Jakafi rose 16% to $741 million during the third quarter, beating estimates of $725.2 million.

Total sales from Opzelura, used for the treatment of vitiligo and mild-to-moderate atopic dermatitis in patients 12 years and older, also jumped 52% to $139 million in the quarter. That also topped estimates of $130.8 million.

The drugmaker is banking on Opzelura’s sales as it braces for a loss of exclusivity to Jakafi in 2028.

On an adjusted-basis, Incyte earned $1.07 per share in the quarter ended Sept. 30, in line with estimates.

Its total revenue came in at $1.14 billion, above estimates of $1.07 billion.

(Reporting by Unnamalai L in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)