H1N1 sales boost GSK - again

H1N1 Sales

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) have seen a record boost to sales after revealing that sales of its influenza A (H1N1) vaccine reached GBP£835 million in the fourth quarter of 2009.

According to the UK-based pharmaceutical company, around 130 million doses of the vaccine were delivered to governments in the closing quarter of the last decade, which, along with pandemic vaccine products supplied to the US and other governments, amounted to unaudited sales of GBP£835 million. The drugs giant added that a donation of 60 million vaccines to the World Health Organisation (WHO) will be charged as a selling, general and administrative cost for the fourth quarter of 2009.

Reports by leading authority Pharma Times say that the company, which both continues to deliver shipments of the vaccine throughout the first quarter of 2010 and remains in "ongoing discussions with governments as their needs evolve", is already looking at renegotiation's of existing contracts to continue delivery beyond the first quarter.

A statement from the company suggests that it is "therefore too early to say what the final number of doses supplied and the value of these orders will be."

Similar discussions

Interestingly, these figures have been released just days after GSK reached an agreement with the German Ministry of Health to amend its existing contract to receive 34 million doses rather than 50 million. Reports also note that the firm is involved in several similar discussions with governments in the UK, France, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium.

Analysts at Credit Suisse had downgraded GSK shares to under-perform from outperform, saying that "emerging concerns that pandemic flu potential has been overstated could ultimately limit earnings growth."

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