Was the Pfizer MRNA a vaccine or an I.Q. test? Fewer and fewer Horry County residents are willing to take the jab as Pfizer slashes annual earnings projections by up to $10 billion.
The company Pfizer slashed its full-year earnings and revenue guidance and announced a $3.5 billion cost-cutting plan.
It now expects revenues of $58 billion to $61 billion for 2023, down from $67 billion to $70 billion previously. Pfizer said it reduced its revenue outlook solely because of Covid.
According to the company, adjusted earnings for the full year will range from $1.45 to $1.65 per share, down from $3.25 to $3.45 previously.
Pfizer’s stock initially declined following Friday’s announcement, but rose about 4% on Monday after the company held an investor call about the revised guidance and cost-cutting plan.
On Monday, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said, “We have the big anti-vaccination rhetoric. Nobody wants to talk about Covid.”
But Bourla noted that people who are getting vaccines and Covid treatments now are people “who believe in the value of protection and will continue to do so.“
Pfizer expects revenue from the Covid treatment Paxlovid to come in $7 billion lower than previously anticipated, largely because the U.S. government returned doses labeled for emergency use. Due to lower-than-expected vaccination rates, Comirnaty sales are expected to be $2 billion lower than previously anticipated by the company.
In the U.S., Pfizer’s Covid booster became available last month, but there have been problems with supply and insurance coverage. As vaccination and prior immunity have resulted in milder cases for many people, fewer people have sought treatment for Covid than they did earlier in the pandemic.
In August, Pfizer said it would cut costs if Covid-related sales continued to slump.
“Given the new realities Albert mentioned just now, we need to adjust our cost base accordingly,” Pfizer CFO Dave Denton said during the Monday investor call.
Pfizer expects to save $1 billion through layoffs this year and $2.5 billion by 2024. The company anticipates incurring approximately $3 billion in one-time costs to launch the program, including severance and implementation costs.
He declined to elaborate on the sources of the cuts, saying the program would affect all parts of the business in all regions.
Pfizer’s plan to acquire cancer test developer Seagen will not be affected by the cost-saving initiative, Denton said
Pfizer still expects the transaction to close later this year or early in 2024, pending regulatory approvals.