Viatris Earnings Top $1 Billion Thanks to Sale of Its Biosimilar Portfolio

In its earnings report for the fourth quarter and full year of 2022, Viatris accumulated $1.95 billion of cash proceeds in US generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) net cash by the end of 2022, which was largely driven by Viatris’ transfer of its biosimilars portfolio to Biocon Biologics.

Biocon Biologics’ acquisition of Viatris’ biosimilars was announced in March 2022 and was completed in November 2022. Viatris and Biocon Biologics will continue to work together over the next few years to ensure a smooth transition. As part of the agreement, Viatris will receive up-front payments of $2.3 billion and compulsorily convertible preference shares in Biocon Biologics, which are valued at $1 billion.

“For Viatris, this is the eighth consecutive quarter of strong execution that has enabled us to continue to deliver on our Phase 1 commitments to build a solid foundation and set our company up for Phase 2. The execution of planned divestitures remains on track and we are confident in our expectation that 2024 and beyond will be a period of renewed growth for the company,” said Michael Goettler, CEO of Viatris, in a statement.

The taxes and associated transactions costs related to the deal amounted to $254 million and were reported in US GAAP net cash provided by operating activities. Starting in 2022, up-front and milestone-related research and development expenses related to the collaboration and licensing arrangements were included in reported adjusted financial metrics.

Viatris’ total net sales for 2022 were $3.9 billion, an 11% increase from the year prior. Complex generics and biosimilars accumulated $247 million in sales, 29% higher than in 2021.

Additionaly, Viatris increased its return of capital to shareholders by completing $250 million in share repurchases, and its board of directors approved a dividend policy of $0.48 per share for 2023. Regarding its debt payment goal, Viatris paid down about $1.2 billion in debt in the fourth quarter ($3.3 billion for the year), which was above target.

“We believe Viatris is in a very strong financial position to begin 2023. Despite all of the moving pieces and ongoing activities, we expect to deliver a solid 2023 and we remain confident in our outlook for 2024 and beyond. We expect to significantly increase the return of capital to shareholders in 2023 while continuing to pay down debt. We believe the actions we are taking to reshape the company are serving to strengthen the foundation and position us for long-term growth,” noted Sanjeev Narula, Viatris’ chief financial officer.

Viatris generated approximately $133 million in new product revenues in the fourth quarter, and approximately $483 million for the whole year, primarily driven by a generic of Revlimid (lenalidomide) in the United States.

“We met our commitments in 2022 to advance the pipeline, integrate and capture synergies, and stabilize the base business. We believe we will continue to effectively manage our established brand business to drive stability of our base business in 2023 and position the company for growth. We are also excited with the advancement of key development programs across complex injectables, novel products, complex generics, as well as our Phase III-ready eye care pipeline,” explained Rajiv Malik, Viatris’ president.