AbbVie's Q4 2024 Earnings: A Strong Finish to the Year

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) reported its fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 earnings on January 31, 2025, capping off a year of significant progress and growth. The company's strong performance was driven by its ex-Humira platform, strategic transactions, and pipeline advancements. Here's a closer look at AbbVie's Q4 2024 earnings and the key factors contributing to its success.

Q4 2024 Earnings Highlights:

* Adjusted diluted EPS of $2.16, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.13.
* Net revenues of $15.102 billion, an increase of 5.6% on a reported basis and 6.1% on an operational basis.
* Full-year net revenues of $56.334 billion, an increase of 3.7% on a reported basis and 4.6% on an operational basis.
* Adjusted diluted EPS of $10.12, a decrease of 8.9% compared to the previous year.

Key Drivers of AbbVie's Growth:

1. Ex-Humira Platform:
* Skyrizi and Rinvoq: These two drugs are expected to generate nearly $24 billion of revenue in 2025, reflecting growth of more than $6 billion. AbbVie now expects Skyrizi and Rinvoq to exceed more than $31 billion of combined sales in 2027, which is $4 billion above the guidance provided last year. The strong performance of these drugs is driven by robust growth across all their approved indications, especially in IBD.
* Imbruvica: Despite a slight decrease in net revenues in 2024, Imbruvica remains a significant contributor to AbbVie's ex-Humira platform. The drug's international profit sharing increased by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, demonstrating its ongoing strength.
* Venclexta: Venclexta generated revenues of $655 million in the fourth quarter, reflecting 13% growth on an operational basis. The drug's sales missed both the Zacks Consensus Estimate and the model estimate, but it still contributed to the overall growth of the ex-Humira platform.
* Elahere: Added from the acquisition of ImmunoGen, Elahere generated revenues of $148 million in the fourth quarter, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $145 million and the model estimate of $146 million. The drug's sales contributed to the growth of the oncology portfolio, which increased by 12.9% on an operational basis in the quarter.
2. Strategic Transactions:
* Allergan Acquisition (2019): The acquisition of Allergan brought in a portfolio of facial aesthetics products, including Botox Cosmetic and Juvederm, which have since contributed to AbbVie's growth. In 2024, the aesthetics portfolio generated $5.176 billion in global net revenues, a decrease of 2.2% on a reported basis but an increase of 0.6% on an operational basis. The company has updated its outlook for aesthetics to deliver high single-digit compound annual revenue growth rate from 2025 through 2029.
* ImmunoGen Acquisition (2024): AbbVie's acquisition of ImmunoGen added Elahere to its portfolio, a drug for treating ovarian cancer. In the fourth quarter of 2024, Elahere generated revenues of $148 million, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $145 million.
3. Pipeline Advancements:
* Regulatory Approvals and Promising Data: AbbVie has made significant progress in advancing its pipeline with key regulatory approvals and promising data. For instance, Epkinly, a drug for treating lymphoma, and Qulipta, for episodic and chronic migraine, have contributed to the company's growth. In 2024, combined global Ubrelvy and Qulipta net revenues were $1.664 billion.
* Label Expansions: AbbVie has expanded the labels of its existing drugs to include new patient populations, driving sales growth. Rinvoq, for example, has seen label expansions to include new patient populations in recent quarters, contributing to its 47.1% year-over-year increase in sales in the fourth quarter of 2024.
* Strong Pipeline: AbbVie's pipeline consists of several promising drugs, such as Skyrizi and Rinvoq, which are expected to generate nearly $24 billion of revenue in 2025, reflecting growth of more than $6 billion. The company expects these two drugs to exceed more than $31 billion of combined sales in 2027.

AbbVie's strong performance in Q4 2024 and throughout the year was driven by its ex-Humira platform, strategic transactions, and pipeline advancements. The company's ability to maintain and grow its market share in the immunology, neuroscience, and oncology segments, as well as its successful integration of strategic transactions and pipeline advancements, has positioned AbbVie for continued success in the coming years.