Roche reports ‘strong’ first quarter sales

Roche has announced its results for the first quarter of the 2007 financial year, reporting “strong” sales figures and a resulting upgrade in its core earnings per share (EPS) forecast for the year.

The company saw a 17 per cent rise in group sales on the same period last year when measured in local currencies, with revenues rising to CHF 11,358 million (4,692.2 million pounds).

Pharmaceutical sales at the firm rose 20 per cent on the first quarter of 2006, when measured in local currencies, with this level of growth equal to three times that of the global pharmaceuticals industry.

Following the publication of these sales figures, Roche predicts that its core EPS will grow at a higher rate than that of group sales.

Franz B Humer, chairman and chief executive officer of the company, said: “Roche began 2007 with an impressive growth far ahead of the industry, continuing the trend established in 2006.”

He added that the broadening of the indications for cancer drugs Avastin, Herceptin, MabThera and Xeloda established the compounds as the “gold standard” in their respective areas.

Also this week, Roche announced that Avastin had been approved in Japan for use in patients with inoperable advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer.