Roche Q3 sales rise 7% to 16.1B francs, beats estimates; reaffirms full-year guidance

Roche reported third-quarter group sales up 7% to 16.1 billion Swiss francs ($19.6 billion), beating the 15.8 billion franc consensus, but analysts flagged the beat as "cosmetic" and questioned the company's growth trajectory into 2027 as it faces looming patent cliffs. Jefferies analyst Michael Leuchten attributed part of the beat to a new resource planning system, noting underlying numbers "would seem to be a miss." Roche reaffirmed its "mid single digit range" sales growth guidance for the year rather than raising it. Xolair sales reached only 848 million francs versus analyst estimates above 900 million, as a copycat version launched in the U.S. this month. Ocrevus and Tecentriq face generic competition by 2030, with Hemlibra following early next decade — together representing four of Roche's five best sellers in the quarter. Roche is pinning hopes on breast cancer pill giredestrant, with an FDA decision expected by Dec. 18, and obesity drugs it says could generate $9 billion in combined peak annual sales. The company has signed 11 Chinese licensing deals since the start of 2025, including six in the past two months.