Biogen stock jumped 5% to about $202 during Wednesday morning trading, after the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical company reported higher than expected sales of its groundbreaking Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi.
Leqembi generated $19 million in sales in the first quarter of 2024, outperforming analyst expectations of $11 million, according to FactSet. That figure is more than triple the amount of sales the drug generated in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The Food and Drug Administration first granted Leqembi, which Biogen developed with Japan-based Eisai, traditional approval last summer. The drug has been shown to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s by breaking down a brain protein called amyloid beta. This protein is believed to be a cause of Alzheimer’s.
Adoption of the new drug has been slow due to concerns of its potential side effects including brain swelling. However, Biogen said on Wednesday that usage is starting to accelerate.
“We see momentum building at a steady pace for Leqembi,” said Biogen CEO Christopher Viehbacher in a statement. “In particular, we were encouraged that Leqembi in-market revenue for the first quarter nearly tripled sequentially and we saw a significant build in month-to-month new patient starts in the first quarter.”
Biogen’s first quarter, by the digits
Biogen’s net income rose more than 1.4% in the three months ending March 31, to $393 million, from $387 million in the same period last year.
The company’s total revenue fell 7% year over year to $2.3 billion in its third quarter, from $2.5 billion.
Biogen’s earnings per share came to $3.67, beating analysts’ estimates of $3.45, according to FactSet.