Roche Holding AG’s share price down, posts a 1.8% increase in its third-quarter sales due to new cancer drugs

Roche Holding AG made an official statement today that its sales over the third fiscal quarter increased by 1.8%, as its revenue rose because of the new cancer drugs Kadcyla and Perjeta.

Chi Tran-Brändli, an analyst at J. Safra Sarasin, commented on the companys performance over the quarter for the Wall Street Journal: “Roche delivered a strong set of sales figure in a relatively difficult year for the company. Together with the approval and premium pricing of Esbriet in the U.S., they should set the stage for another strong year for Roche’s stock.”

According to the statement by the Switzerland-based company, its quarterly sales increased from CHF 11.6 billion a year ago to CHF 11.8 billion ($12.5 billion). The result surpassed the initial analysts projections of CHF 11.6 billion in sales.

Roche noted that its Kadcyla treatments revenue increased more than two times and reached CHF 114 million. Revenue from the other drug treatment of the company – Perjeta, rose by 227% and reached CHF 245 million.

At present the biggest cancer treatments manufacturer is betting on follow-on products in order to consolidate its positions on the market, especially as generic competition is becoming more serious.

The overall sales of the companys drug unit increased by 4% at constant exchange rates, while the revenue of its diagnostics business rose by 7%. As reported by Bloomberg, Roches Chief Executive Officer, Severin Schwan, said in the above mentioned statement: “Demand for our products is strong in both divisions and we are well on track to reach our full-year targets.”

Roche Holding AG lost 1.16% to trade at CHF255.90 per share by 12:42 GMT, marking a one-year increase of 4.19%. The company is valued at CHF 222.01 billion. According to the Financial Times, the 22 analysts offering 12-month price targets for Roche Holding AG have a median target of CHF 294.00, with a high estimate of CHF 335.00 and a low estimate of CHF 251.00. The median estimate represents a 13.56% increase from the last price of CHF 258.90.