Pfizer forecasts 2026 profit below expectations on lower COVID product sales

Dec 16 (Reuters) – Pfizer on Tuesday forecast 2026 profit below Wall Street estimates as it expects a steep drop in sales of its COVID products and a revenue hit from the loss of exclusivity on some drugs.

Investors were keenly awaiting Pfizer’s forecast to see if CEO Albert Bourla’s cost-cutting measures, new product launches and steady demand for older drugs were helping offset a decline in COVID-related sales.

Pfizer has rolled out a sweeping cost reduction program in response to the drop in COVID-19 sales. The company targets more than $7.7 billion in total savings through 2027.

The drugmaker expects adjusted profit of between $2.80 and $3 per share for the coming year, below analysts’ average estimate of $3.05 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

It expects revenue for next year in the range of $59.5 billion to $62.5 billion, compared with estimates of $61.59 billion.

The projection includes a revenue shortfall of about $1.5 billion from COVID-19 products, compared with 2025.

The company also sees a revenue impact of about $1.5 billion due to the loss of exclusivity on certain products in 2026.

Pfizer also revised its annual 2025 revenue forecast to about $62 billion from a range of $61 to $64 billion expected previously. It maintained its adjusted profit outlook for the year.

The company expects full-year 2026 adjusted R&D expenses to be in the range of $10.5 billion to $11.5 billion – $500 million higher at either end than the 2025 estimate – due to development of an antibody in-licensed from 3SBio as well as multiple clinical programs from Metsera.

Pfizer last month closed its up to $10 billion acquisition of Metsera after winning shareholder approval, gaining a foothold in the fast-growing obesity market following a fierce bidding war with Novo Nordisk.

Shares of the company were up marginally in premarket trading.

(Reporting by Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)