GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript November 1, 2023

GSK plc beats earnings expectations. Reported EPS is $1.28, expectations were $1.09.

Nick Stone: Hello, everyone. It's Nick Stone, Head of Investor Relations. Welcome to our Year-to-Date and Q3 2023 Results Conference Call and Webcast for Investors and Analysts. The presentation was sent out to our distribution list by email. And you can also find us on gsk.com. Please turn to Slide 2. This is the usual safe harbor statements. We will comment on our performance using constant exchange rates, or CER, unless stated otherwise. As a reminder, following the Consumer Healthcare demerger in 2022 to form Haleon, we're representing performance and growth of the continuing operations for GSK. Please turn to Slide 3. Today's call will last approximately one hour with the management presentation taking around 30 minutes and the remaining time for your questions.

[Operator Instructions] Our speakers are Emma Walmsley, Tony Wood, Luke Miels, Deborah Waterhouse and Julie Brown, with David Redfern joining the rest of the team for the Q&A portion of the call. I'll now hand the call over to Emma.

A pharmacist holding a vial of a pharmaceutical product manufactured by West Pharmaceuticals.

Emma Walmsley: Thanks, Nick, and welcome to everybody joining us today. I am delighted to be presenting to you all with another set of excellent quarterly results. Please turn to the next slide. Sales and profits grew double-digits for the quarter, with sales up 16% to £8.1 billion, adjusted operating profit up 22% to £2.8 billion, and adjusted earnings per share up 25% to £0.504, all excluding pandemic solutions. Our strong performance was broadly based and benefitted particularly from the outstanding US launch of our RSV vaccine, Arexvy, on track to be a blockbuster in its first year on the market. This excellent execution together with our drive for efficiency and margin accretion, means we can upgrade our 2023 sales, adjusted operating profit and adjusted EPS guidance.

For the year, we now expect sales to increase between 12% and 13%, adjusted operating profit to increase between 13% and 15%, and adjusted EPS to increase between 17% and 20%. Within sales, we are upgrading the outlooks across all segments for the year, reflecting our clear momentum. Our performance also clearly demonstrates delivery of the strategic choices we've made to invest in prevention, as well as the treatment of disease. New products launched since 2017 have contributed sales of £7.8 billion so far this year, with nearly 80% of them coming from Vaccines and Specialty Medicines. Approvals this year for Arexvy and Apretude, together with two important oncology medicines Jemperli and, most recently, Ojjaara, further strengthen this new product portfolio, and offer meaningful sources of profitable growth.

So taken altogether, this is a strong and sustained performance heading into 2024. Next slide, please. This quarter, further underscore the importance and strength of our Vaccines' business. Prevention is an increasing focus for healthcare systems all around the world. GSK is a world leader in vaccines and is extremely well-placed to deliver innovation and offer value to both individuals and payers. The introduction of Arexvy in the US is evidence of this, demonstrating our strong launch capabilities because with over £700 million of sales and its very first quarter as we protect people at scale from this life-threatening disease, and especially those with comorbidities. Generating further clinical evidence for Arexvy remains a clear priority and we were pleased to present positive data in adults aged 50 to 59 years at the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices last month.

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