Roche 2015 sales hit by strong currency; earnings miss expectations

Swiss pharma giant Roche (ROG: SIX) released full-year 2015 financial results this morning, showing that group sales increased by 5% to 48.15 billion Swiss francs ($47.33) at constant exchange rates (+1% actual), driven primarily by pharmaceutical sales in the USA and by strong demand for immunodiagnostic products, and beating analysts’ expectations of 47.97 billion francs.

Net income rose 4% to 9.06 billion in constant currency terms, a drop of 5% in francs, owing to a “major negative currency impact,” after the Swiss central bank scrapped a long-standing cap on the currency. Excluding a one-time income of 428 million francs from the sale of filgrastim rights in 2014, core operating profit increased 7% at constant exchange rates. On the same basis, core earnings per share at 13.49 francs were 7% higher. Analysts had expected EPS at 14.10 francs. Roche’s shares fell more than 3% to 256.00 francs in by mid-morning trading.

Pharmaceutical performance