AbbVie NYSE: ABBV reported first-quarter 2026 results that exceeded its expectations and prompted an increase to full-year guidance, with management citing broad-based momentum across the company’s commercial portfolio and multiple pipeline and business development updates.
Quarterly results and raised outlook
Chairman and CEO Rob Michael said AbbVie is “off to an excellent start to the year,” with performance “exceeding our expectations across our diverse portfolio.” The company reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.65, which Michael said was $0.07 above the midpoint of AbbVie’s guidance. Total net revenues were $15.0 billion, beating AbbVie’s expectations by $300 million and reflecting sales growth of 12.4%.
Chief Financial Officer Scott Reents said first-quarter adjusted EPS included a $0.41 unfavorable impact from acquired in-process R&D (IPR&D) expense. He also detailed first-quarter profitability and expense ratios, including an adjusted gross margin of 83.6% of sales, adjusted R&D expense of 15.1% of sales, and adjusted SG&A expense of 22.7% of sales. AbbVie’s adjusted operating margin ratio was 40.8% of sales, which Reents said included a 5% unfavorable impact from acquired IPR&D expense.
Following the quarter, AbbVie raised full-year adjusted EPS guidance by $0.12 to a range of $14.08 to $14.28. Reents said the company now expects 2026 total net revenues of approximately $67.3 billion, an increase of $300 million, and noted the full-year guidance does not include any estimate for acquired IPR&D expense that may occur beyond the first quarter.
- SKYRIZI: AbbVie now expects global revenues of $21.6 billion (up $100 million), reflecting demand growth in psoriatic and IBD indications.
- RINVOQ: AbbVie now expects global sales of $10.2 billion (up $100 million), reflecting strong performance in rheumatology and gastroenterology.
- Neuroscience: AbbVie now expects total neuroscience revenues of $12.6 billion (up $100 million), reflecting momentum across the portfolio.
For the second quarter, Reents said AbbVie anticipates net revenues of approximately $16.7 billion and adjusted EPS between $3.74 and $3.78, excluding any acquired IPR&D expense that may be incurred.
Commercial performance led by immunology and neuroscience
Chief Commercial Officer Jeff Stewart highlighted strong results in immunology, where total revenues were $7.3 billion, reflecting $1.0 billion of sales growth. SKYRIZI total sales were $4.5 billion, up 29.2% operationally, and Stewart said the product continues to gain share across psoriatic disease and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). He cited newly presented data at the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) meeting and said the FDA approved adding new results in genital and scalp psoriasis to the SKYRIZI label.
RINVOQ global sales were $2.1 billion, up 20.2% operationally, with Stewart pointing to strong demand across indications and “a nice inflection” in gastroenterology prescriptions, particularly in ulcerative colitis, following an expanded label that supports earlier use in IBD. Meanwhile, HUMIRA global sales were $688 million, down 40.3% operationally, which Stewart said was in line with expectations amid biosimilar competition.
In neuroscience, Stewart said revenue was nearly $2.9 billion, up 24.3% operationally. He pointed to double-digit growth across AbbVie’s migraine portfolio (UBRELVY, QULIPTA, and BOTOX Therapeutic) and said VRAYLAR global sales were $905 million, up 18.4%. Stewart also said AbbVie’s Parkinson’s therapy VYALEV is on track to achieve blockbuster revenue this year, with sales of $201 million, up about 10% sequentially. AbbVie is also preparing for a potential U.S. approval and launch of tavapadon later in 2026.
In oncology, total revenues were more than $1.6 billion, down 3% operationally. Stewart said VENCLEXTA sales were $770 million, up 9.7% operationally, supported by emerging combination use with BTK inhibitors for a fixed treatment duration, while IMBRUVICA declined 24.7% due to IRA pricing and competitive pressure.
AbbVie’s aesthetics business posted global sales of nearly $1.2 billion, up 5.1% operationally. BOTOX Cosmetic revenue rose 17% to $668 million, which Stewart attributed to a favorable U.S. price comparison and modest market growth, while JUVÉDERM sales fell 2.9% to $232 million amid “continued headwinds in key dermal filler markets.” In response to a question about the category’s resilience in prior downturns, Stewart said the current backdrop reflects a “lingering inflationary dynamic” that differs from prior recessionary periods.
Pipeline progress: IBD combinations, obesity data, and oncology updates
Chief Scientific Officer Roopal Thakkar detailed multiple clinical and regulatory updates. In gastroenterology, she said AbbVie’s phase III AFFIRM study for SKYRIZI subcutaneous induction in Crohn’s disease met all co-primary and key secondary endpoints, demonstrating “very high levels of endoscopic response and clinical remission.” AbbVie has submitted a U.S. regulatory application for this dosing option, with an approval decision anticipated later in 2026.
Thakkar also discussed an interim analysis from an AbbVie Crohn’s platform study evaluating a combination of SKYRIZI and AbbVie’s anti-alpha-4 beta-7 antibody, ABBV-382. She said the combination produced an endoscopic remission rate at week 24 that was double either monotherapy arm, with about 42% of patients on the combination achieving endoscopic remission at week 24 in a severe, refractory population. Safety was consistent with the monotherapies, she said, with no new signals observed. The study is expected to complete in the third quarter, with a medical meeting presentation anticipated by early next year.
In obesity, Thakkar highlighted top-line results from a multiple ascending dose study for AbbVie’s long-acting amylin analog ABBV-295. She said ABBV-295 produced “clinically meaningful weight loss of nearly 10% after only 12 weeks of treatment,” in a predominantly male, non-obese population, and was “well-tolerated with mostly mild and transient” gastrointestinal side effects. Later in the call, she added that ABBV-295 is a DACRA molecule that signals through amylin and calcitonin, and said the half-life is approximately 270 hours, supporting the potential for every-other-week dosing and “the potential for monthly.”
In oncology, Michael said AbbVie now expects a regulatory submission for Etentamig by the end of 2026, earlier than previous expectations. Thakkar added that the phase III trial evaluating Etentamig monotherapy in third-line-plus multiple myeloma is tracking ahead of schedule, with a response rate readout expected in the third quarter and a possible interim progression-free survival analysis that could support regulatory submissions later in 2026 if positive.
Business development, IP commentary, and U.S. investment plans
Michael emphasized AbbVie’s continued interest in external innovation, particularly across immunology, neuroscience, oncology, and obesity. He said AbbVie is operating “from a position of strength” and has “ample financial capacities” to pursue opportunities, citing recent deals including Capstan, Gilgamesh, IGI, RemeGen, AdRx, and Gubra.
On AbbVie’s RemeGen agreement for a PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody, Thakkar said the company’s interest is centered on combinations with AbbVie’s emerging ADC portfolio, including Temab-A, and potential use across several tumor types.
On SKYRIZI intellectual property and biosimilar timing, Michael said that while SKYRIZI’s composition of matter patent expires in 2033, AbbVie has later-expiring IP “granted and in process” that includes U.S. patents expiring in the mid-2030s and later. He also noted regulatory data protection for SKYRIZI does not expire until 2031, and said AbbVie does not expect biosimilar application filings until the end of the decade.
Michael also pointed to manufacturing expansion tied to AbbVie’s stated $100 billion commitment to U.S. R&D and capital investment over the next decade, including a $1.4 billion pharmaceutical manufacturing campus in North Carolina and $380 million for two new plants in North Chicago.
About AbbVie NYSE: ABBV
AbbVie is a global, research-driven biopharmaceutical company that was created as a spin-off from Abbott Laboratories in 2013 and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois. The company focuses on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies for complex and often chronic medical conditions. Its operations span research and development, manufacturing, regulatory affairs and commercialization, with an emphasis on bringing specialty medicines to market across multiple therapeutic areas.
AbbVie's product portfolio and pipeline cover several major therapeutic categories, including immunology, oncology, neuroscience, virology and women's health.
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