Incyte Corporation, one of the region’s largest pharmaceutical companies, today reported fourth-quarter and year-end financial gains for 2016. The company attributes the success, in part, to the growth of a few key products and the expansion of its global footprint.
For the quarter ended December 31, total revenues were $326 million as compared to $244 million for the same period in 2015. For the full year of 2016, total revenues were $1.1 billion as compared to $754 million in 2015.
“Having now surpassed $1 billion in total annual revenue for the first time, we believe we are in a strong position to execute on our discovery and development objectives and build a global bio-pharmaceutical company bringing medicines to patients in need,” said CEO Hervé Hoppenot.
Net product sales in 2016 for Jakafi, which treats bone marrow disorders, were $853 million as compared to $601 million in 2015, representing 42 percent increase. For the quarter, revenues of Jakafi were $238 million as compared to $182 million for the same period in 2015, representing 30 percent growth.
Some of these profits were driven by overseas sales. For the quarter, product royalties from sales of Jakafi outside of the United States were $33 million and $111 million respectively, as compared to $24 million and $75 million respectively for the same periods in 2015. The sales were made through a partnership with Novartis, a Swiss pharmaceutical company,
“We have had a very productive year at Incyte, during which we expanded our geographic footprint to include Europe and further advanced our clinical portfolio, including the recently announced expansion of the epacadostat development program,” Hoppenot said.
Contract revenues were $43 million for the quarter and $113 million for the full year, compared to $38 million and $78 million respectively for the same periods in 2015.
The company, known for extensive investments in research and development, is expanding its early-stage research and development, including its FGFR4 inhibitor program and collaborations on bispecific antibodies and arginase inhibition. Incyte’s Baricitinib, a potential new oral treatment for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, licensed to Eli Lilly and Company, is now approved in Europe as Olumiant. The drug is still under regulatory review elsewhere.
The European approval of Olumiant triggers a $65 million payment to Incyte from Lilly, making Incyte eligible to receive additional potential milestone payments and royalties. Incyte has recently opted into co-development of multiple new indications for baricitinib, including psoriatic arthritis, in which Lilly is expected to begin a Phase 3 trial in 2017. The company anticipates the initiation of new pivotal trials in at least six indications from its broad late-stage portfolio during 2017 and is conducting four Phase 2 trials. The trials, if successful, could also potentially act as registration-enabling studies. Two recent strategic collaborations have added to Incyte’s early-stage R&D programs, an alliance with Merus and a licensing agreement with Calithera.
