Top10 Pharmaceutical companies 2016

Top 10 Pharmaceutical Company 2016



1. Johnson & Johnson (U.S.): Revenue 2015 = 70,074 USD Million

Johnson & Johnson (U.S.) is the top-ranked organization in this list. The company had the highest revenues in 2015. Its pharmaceuticals division contributed to 44.85% of its revenues in 2015. The company had one of the largest R&D budgets in 2015. However, the most important reason for its high rank is the diversity of its product portfolio – the contribution of its top-3 drugs to the pharmaceutical revenues (35.84%) was one of the lowest in this list. Remicade, Stelara, and Zytiga were the top-3 drugs for this company in 2015. The combined revenue of these three products was USD 11,266 million in 2015

2.Hoffmann-La Roche AG (Switzerland) : Revenue 2015 = 50,111 USD Million

Hoffmann-La Roche AG had revenues of USD 50,111 million in 2015. Its pharmaceuticals segment contributed to 77.54% of its revenue in 2015. The company had the highest R&D expenses in 2015 – USD 9,972 million. However, the company’s product portfolio is narrow. Avastin, Herceptin, and Rituxan were the top-3 drugs for Roche in 2015. They contributed to 50.53% of the company’s revenue in 2015. All these three products are related to oncology. Furthermore, the patens of these three products is about to expire by in a few years (2016 for Avastin and Herceptin and 2019 for Rituxan). This will expose the company to competition from biosimilars.

3.Pfizer Inc. (U.S.) : Revenue 2015 = 49,414 USD Million

Pfizer Inc. had revenue of USD 48,851 million in 2015. The companies R&D expenses were USD 7,690 million in 2015. The top-3 drugs products of the company contributed 27.09% to the company’s revenue in2015. Pfizer had one of the lowest ratios of the proportions of revenue from its top-3 drugs to total revenue, indicating a healthy product portfolio. Furthermore, its highest-selling drug, Prevnar, has patent expiry horizon of 2026, which would help the company maintain its market position.

4.Novartis AG (Switzerland) : Revenue 2015 = 48,851 USD Million

The total revenue for Novartis AG was USD 49,414 million in 2015. The company’s revenues declined by 5.30% over the previous year. The company invested USD 8,935 million in R&D in 2015. The company also has a diverse product offering, with the top-3 drug products contributing only 31.18% to the company’s pharmaceutical revenues in 2015. The company’s top-3 drugs in 2015 were Glivec, Gilenya, and Lucentis. The combined sales of these 3 products was USD 9,494 million in 2015.

5.Bayer AG (Germany) : Revenue 2015 = 41,407 USD Million

Bayer AG is the only German company in this list. Though its total revenues were higher than those of Roche, Pfizer, and Novartis, the revenues of its pharmaceuticals segment was low – USD 15,253 million in 2015. The ratio of the proportion of revenue from its top-3 drugs to total revenue was one of the lowest for Pfizer – 33.72% in 2015.

6.Merck & Co., Inc. (U.S.) : Revenue 2015 = 39,498 USD Million

Merck & Co., Inc. had total revenue of USD 39,498 million in 2015. The company’s pharmaceuticals division contributed to 88.06% of this figure in 2015. The company invested USD 6,704 million in R&D in 2015, which in relation to its revenue was one of the highest. Furthermore, the contribution of top-3 drugs to revenue was one of the lowest for Merck (24.55% in 2015), second only to the ratio for GSK.

7. GlaxoSmithKline plc (U.K.) : Revenue 2015 = 36,466 USD Million

GlaxoSmithKline plc is the first U.K-based company in this list. It had total revenues of USD 36,566 million in 2015. The company invested USD 5,441 million in R&D in 2015. The company had the lowest ratios for the contribution of top-3 drugs to its revenues – 21.50% in 2015.

8.Sanofi (France) : Revenue 2015 = 34,542 USD Million

Sanofi is the only French company in this list. It was also one of the two companies in this list with positive growth rates in 2015. The company’s revenues grew by 8.99% between 2014 and 2015 to reach USD 34,542 million in 2015. The company invested USD 5,092 million in R&D in 2015. Furthermore, revenues its top-3 products – Lantus, Plavix, and Lovenox – contributed only 29.06% to its revenues in 2015. However, the patents of all three products has expired as of 2014, and the company needs to rapidly expand and diversify its product offering.

9.Gilead Sciences, Inc. (U.S.) : Revenue 2015 = 32,639 USD Million

Gilead Sciences, Inc. had the highest growth rates in 2015. The company grew by 31.13% between 2014 and 2015, to reach USD 32,639 million in 2015. The company invested USD 3,014 million in R&D in 2015. Its top-3 drugs – Harvoni, Sovaldi, and Truvada – contributed 55.48% of its revenues in 2015. This ratio too is the highest amongst its peers in this list. However, the patent-expiry horizons for all three products are substantially long (2030 for Harvoni, 2029 for Sovaldi, and 2021 for Truvada), which would help sustain the company’s rapid growth.

10.AstraZeneca plc (U.K.) : Revenue 2015 = 23,641 USD Million

The revenue for AstraZeneca plc was USD 23,641 million in 2015. The company invested USD 5,997 million in R&D in 2015. The company’s R&D investments in relation to its revenue was the highest amongst all companies in this list. The company’s strategy to invest in R&D is critical to its growth as its top-3 drugs – which contributed 46.14% to its revenue in 2015 – are fast approaching patent expiry. Crestor’s and Nexium’s patents expire in 2016 while Symbicort’s expires in 2017.

Credit by SEC fillings and annual reports