Sandoz (SIX:SDZ/OTCQX:SDZNY), the global leader in affordable medicines, will today present its plans to seize what it calls an unprecedented 'golden decade' of opportunity in the pharmaceutical industry at the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco. CEO Richard Saynor is scheduled to speak on Tuesday, January 13, at 18:45 CET (9:45 PST), highlighting the company's strong momentum and strategic focus as a 'pure-play' biosimilar and generic company.
The presentation comes as Sandoz marks its second year as an independent company, having been spun off from Novartis in 2023. Saynor will emphasize the company's consistent delivery on commitments, including six biosimilar launches in 2025 and significant investments in manufacturing capacity. Notably, Sandoz broke ground on a major sterile biosimilars production center in Brnik, Slovenia, part of a multi-site project with a total investment exceeding $1.1 billion. The company also completed the acquisition of Just-Evotec Biologics' site in Toulouse, France, bolstering its in-house development and manufacturing capabilities.
The core of Sandoz's strategy revolves around the loss of exclusivity (LoE) of reference medicines worth over $600 billion over the next decade, with a generic opportunity valued at $340 billion and a biosimilar opportunity of $322 billion. Sandoz's pipeline of over 400 assets targets nearly two-thirds of the generic LoE opportunity, with GLP-1s identified as a longer-term growth area. In biosimilars, the company aims to capture approximately 60% of the market, addressing a 'biosimilar void' where over 50 biologics facing LoE in the next seven years currently have no biosimilar in development due to high clinical costs.
Sandoz is advocating for streamlined regulatory pathways to reduce development time and costs without compromising quality, safety, or efficacy. Saynor stated, 'We are the global leader in an attractive, growing and system-critical market. We are poised to seize the unprecedented market opportunity over the next decade, in the interests of our shareholders, our customers, our partners and most importantly our patients.'
The company's financial performance supports its ambitions. With 2024 sales of $10 billion, driven by strong double-digit growth in biosimilars, Sandoz has an attractive balance sheet to fund investments. It maintains a mid-term outlook of mid-single digit annual sales growth to 2028 at constant exchange rates, with core EBITDA margin expansion forecasted to reach 24% to 26% by 2028. Key recent launches include iron ferric, rivaroxaban, and enoxaparin sodium in Europe.
Sandoz's global scale is underpinned by a portfolio of approximately 1,300 products supplied to over 100 countries, a robust manufacturing network, and a team of more than 20,000 employees. The company holds the #1 ranking in the attractive European market, which serves as its home base and cornerstone of global leadership. A webcast of the presentation will be available on the Sandoz website, along with presentation slides after the event.
The implications of this announcement are significant for the healthcare industry and patients worldwide. By targeting a substantial portion of the upcoming LoE wave, Sandoz aims to increase access to affordable medicines, potentially reducing healthcare costs and improving patient outcomes on a global scale. The company's focus on filling the 'biosimilar void' could accelerate the availability of lower-cost biologic alternatives, addressing a critical gap in the market.
