By Ludwig Burger FRANKFURT, Jan 29 (Reuters) – Roche’s full-year adjusted operating income rose by a lower-than-expected 5% as gains in drugs such as Ocrevus against multiple sclerosis and Hemlibra against haemophilia were blunted by a weak U.S. dollar weighing on overseas sales. The lower-than-expected earnings slightly cloud a positive turnaround in the track record of CEO […]
Health
Roche earnings edge up 5% as forex effects weigh on drug sales growth
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By Ludwig Burger
FRANKFURT, Jan 29 (Reuters) – Roche’s full-year adjusted operating income rose by a lower-than-expected 5% as gains in drugs such as Ocrevus against multiple sclerosis and Hemlibra against haemophilia were blunted by a weak U.S. dollar weighing on overseas sales.
The lower-than-expected earnings slightly cloud a positive turnaround in the track record of CEO Thomas Schinecker, close to three years in office, after he oversaw recent drug trial wins that have sharply boosted the stock.
Operating profit, adjusted for special items, came in at 21.8 billion Swiss francs ($28.48 billion) in 2025, the Swiss drugmaker said in a statement on Thursday, just shy of a market consensus of 22 billion francs cited by analysts.
The group also said it expects 2026 group sales to grow in the mid single-digit percentage range, while targeting core earnings per share growth in the high single-digit range.
Revenues in Ocrevus increased 9% to 7.0 billion francs, and in Hemlibra by 11% to 2.7 billion francs, both slightly more than expected, while gains in eye drug Vabsymo and breast cancer therapy Phesgo came in somewhat below market consensus.
The U.S. dollar lost about 12% against the Swiss franc last year and it is down by more than 3% so far in 2026.
($1 = 0.7655 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger, Editing by Friederike Heine and Shri Navaratnam)