As the Q3 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter’s best and worst performers in the branded pharmaceuticals industry, including Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and its peers.

Looking ahead, the branded pharmaceutical industry is positioned for tailwinds from advancements in precision medicine, increasing adoption of AI to enhance drug development efficiency, and growing global demand for treatments addressing chronic and rare diseases. However, headwinds include heightened regulatory scrutiny, pricing pressures from governments and insurers, and the looming patent cliffs for key blockbuster drugs. Patent cliffs bring about competition from generics, forcing branded pharmaceutical companies back to the drawing board to find the next big thing.

The 10 branded pharmaceuticals stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.3%.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 6.3% on average since the latest earnings results.

Pfizer (NYSE: PFE)

With roots dating back to 1849 when two German immigrants opened a fine chemicals business in Brooklyn, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) is a global biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells medicines and vaccines for a wide range of diseases and conditions.

Pfizer reported revenues of $16.65 billion, down 5.9% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but a significant miss of analysts’ organic revenue estimates.

Pfizer delivered the slowest revenue growth of the whole group. Interestingly, the stock is up 1.7% since reporting and currently trades at $25.08.

Is now the time to buy Pfizer? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Best Q3: Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY)

Founded in 1876 by a Civil War veteran and pharmacist frustrated with the poor quality of medicines, Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) discovers, develops, and manufactures pharmaceutical products for conditions including diabetes, obesity, cancer, immunological disorders, and neurological diseases.

Eli Lilly reported revenues of $17.6 billion, up 53.9% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 9.6%. The business had a stunning quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates and full-year revenue guidance exceeding analysts’ expectations.

Eli Lilly pulled off the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 25.8% since reporting. It currently trades at $1,021.

Is now the time to buy Eli Lilly? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Corcept (NASDAQ: CORT)

Focusing on the powerful stress hormone that affects everything from metabolism to immune function, Corcept Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CORT) develops and markets medications that modulate cortisol to treat endocrine disorders, cancer, and neurological diseases.

Corcept reported revenues of $207.6 million, up 13.7% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 5%. It was a softer quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and a significant miss of analysts’ revenue estimates.

Corcept delivered the highest full-year guidance raise but had the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. Interestingly, the stock is up 14% since the results and currently trades at $81.05.

Read our full analysis of Corcept’s results here.

Organon (NYSE: OGN)

Spun off from Merck in 2021 to create a company dedicated to addressing unmet needs in women's health, Organon (NYSE: OGN) is a global healthcare company focused on improving women's health through prescription therapies, medical devices, biosimilars, and established medicines.

Organon reported revenues of $1.60 billion, up 1.3% year on year. This print surpassed analysts’ expectations by 2%. Taking a step back, it was a mixed quarter as it also produced a decent beat of analysts’ revenue estimates but full-year revenue guidance slightly missing analysts’ expectations.

The stock is up 12.5% since reporting and currently trades at $7.63.

Read our full, actionable report on Organon here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Merck (NYSE: MRK)

With roots dating back to 1891 and a portfolio that includes the blockbuster cancer immunotherapy Keytruda, Merck (NYSE: MRK) develops and sells prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal health products across oncology, infectious diseases, cardiovascular, and other therapeutic areas.

Merck reported revenues of $17.28 billion, up 3.7% year on year. This result beat analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. It was a strong quarter as it also logged an impressive beat of analysts’ constant currency revenue estimates and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The stock is up 7.1% since reporting and currently trades at $92.73.

Read our full, actionable report on Merck here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Market Update

As a result of the Fed’s rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has come down from frothy levels post-pandemic. The general rise in the price of goods and services is trending towards the Fed’s 2% goal as of late, which is good news. The higher rates that fought inflation also didn't slow economic activity enough to catalyze a recession. So far, soft landing. This, combined with recent rate cuts (half a percent in September 2024 and a quarter percent in November 2024) have led to strong stock market performance in 2024. The icing on the cake for 2024 returns was Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. Presidential Election in early November, sending major indices to all-time highs in the week following the election. Still, debates around the health of the economy and the impact of potential tariffs and corporate tax cuts remain, leaving much uncertainty around 2025.

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