GSK Gsk Plc

By Cecilia Butini

GlaxoSmithKline PLC said Wednesday that second-quarter net profit fell from the previous year, though sales grew, and backed its outlook for the full year.

The British pharmaceutical major posted net profit of 1.40 billion pounds ($1.94 billion) for the period, down from GBP2.26 billion the year prior. Adjusted earnings per share were 28.1 pence compared with 19.2 pence for the same period a year earlier.

Sales came in at GBP8.09 billion, up from GBP7.62 billion for the second quarter of 2020, when both pharmaceuticals and vaccine sales were affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Pharmaceuticals sales rose 3%, driven by growth in new products and specialty products and as a result of favorable comparables with the previous year, which was hit by destocking following pent-up demand in the first quarter, the company said.

Vaccine turnover grew 39% on year, GlaxoSmithKline said. However, the company said that its performance continued to be hurt by lower demand for routine adult vaccination due to Covid-19 vaccination programs taking priority. GlaxoSmithKline said it expects vaccine revenue for 2021 to be broadly flat.

The company backed a previously given outlook for 2021, saying that it expects adjusted EPS to decline by mid-to-high single-digit percentage at constant exchange rates. Regarding 2022, it said it expects meaningful improvements in revenues and margins.

GlaxoSmithKline declared a dividend of 19 pence a share for the second quarter and said it continues to expect a dividend of 80 pence a share for the full year 2021.

The company said it expects sales of its solutions for Covid-19, including vaccine adjuvants and monoclonal-antibody treatment sotrovimab, to contribute approximately between 4% and 6% to full-year adjusted EPS growth.

Write to Cecilia Butini at cecilia.butini@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 28, 2021 08:37 ET (12:37 GMT)

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