TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s biggest drugmaker, Takeda Pharmaceutical, beat estimates for second-quarter profit on Thursday and lifted its full-year earnings forecast as it restructures to cut costs.
Operating profit in the three months through September stood at 184.2 billion yen ($1.21 billion), the company said, versus a loss of 49.3 billion a year prior and a consensus profit estimate of 93.6 billion in an LSEG survey of four analysts.
Takeda raised its full-year operating profit guidance to 265 billion yen from 225 billion, citing a stronger than expected first-half performance and updated currency assumptions.
In May, the company said it would re-organise to improve profit margins and refocus on drug research and development.
It plans to lay off or transfer about 1,200 employees at centres in San Diego and Massachusetts, domestic media reports said, and unveiled last week an early retirement plan for employees based in Japan.
The company declined to provide specifics on positions affected, telling Reuters the restructuring aimed to “maximize the potential of our therapeutic portfolio, pipeline and organizational structure for long-term growth.”
Takeda is trying to rebuild its drug pipeline after losing patent protection on major earners and mopping up last year’s failures in clinical trials of treatments for lung cancer and Crohn’s disease that caused hefty impairment losses.
The company has high hopes for its experimental narcolepsy treatment TAK-861 and a psoriasis drug candidate bought from U.S.-based Nimbus Therapeutics in late 2022 for as much as $6 billion.
Takeda’s shares have gained 5.2% this year, underperforming a 17% advance in the benchmark Nikkei.
($1=152.8200 yen)
(Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
