Roche Issues Prudent Forecast as Eye Drug’s Sales Disappoint
(Bloomberg) — Roche Holding AG reported disappointing revenue for a blockbuster eye medicine and lackluster growth predictions for the year.
The shares fell in early trading after the Swiss drugmaker said sales of the ophthalmology treatment only rose 7% last quarter amid a slowdown in the US. Roche also issued the same cautious profit and sales forecast as last year, which may prompt some analysts to revise their estimates.
Roche needs new treatments to power growth and recently sparked interest with study results for an experimental breast cancer pill and an obesity injection. The drugmaker aims to reach the top three of the obesity market despite a relatively late start in the booming field, and analysts say its giredestrant pill could become a new backbone for the treatment of hormonal breast cancer.
Vabysmo sales climbed to 1.04 billion francs ($1.36 billion) at constant exchange rates last quarter, less than analysts had forecast. Demand is key as older bulwark medicines decline. A rival stopped funding patient-support foundations in the US that helped with drug access, but Roche said it now stepped up with its own funding to make up and ensure patients get Vabysmo.
“A notable Vabysmo miss may be in focus,” Michael Leuchten, an analyst at Jefferies, wrote in a note.
The stock dropped as much as 2.1% in early Zurich trading. Before the move, it had climbed about 30% in the past six months, more than Swiss rival Novartis AG.
Obesity Push
Chief Executive Officer Thomas Schinecker said the company aims to stand out in obesity with a mix of solid drugs that can be combined with others and diagnostics to identify the right patients. Just this week, mid-stage data showed Roche’s weekly obesity shot delivering weight loss that appears on par with Eli Lilly & Co.’s blockbuster Zepbound and better than Novo Nordisk A/S’s Wegovy.
The company plans to begin late-stage trials this quarter and ultimately test the drug both on its own and in combination with others as it seeks to catch up with market leaders. Schinecker, in an interview, dismissed concerns that Roche’s treatments could reach the market too late.
“We are only scratching the surface” in obesity, he said on Bloomberg Television.
For this year, earnings per share excluding some items will likely rise by a high single-digit percentage at constant currencies, the company said. Sales are expected to grow in the mid single-digit range.
Roche’s earnings per share rose 4% last year, held back by a strong Swiss franc and a slowdown in diagnostics. Sales at the unit declined as prices in China were cut. Roche’s overall sales climbed 2% to 61.5 billion francs, led by medicines like Ocrevus for multiple sclerosis and Hemlibra for hemophilia.
The company is also scheduled to release data on a multiple sclerosis drug this year that could be a successor to Ocrevus.
With the majority of its revenue coming from the US and significant costs in Switzerland, Roche faces an outsize impact from the weak dollar.
–With assistance from Anna Edwards and Guy Johnson.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
