Pharma Powerhouses Post Mixed Results as Tariff Fears Loom

As Big Pharma’s Q1 earnings rolled in, Wall Street reached for aspirin. RegeneronREGN

plunged 6.9% yesterday, while NovartisNVS

and PfizerPFE

edged up 0.7% and 3.2%, respectively. AstraZenecaAZN

recovered from a 5.2% stumble, closing up 2.6%. With impending trade winds rattling supply chains, this earnings season proved no cure-all.

• REGN
  ’s “messy quarter” endured a 26% decline in its cornerstone eye med, Eylea, facing generic competition and an FDA-rejected variant — whileZN
  ’s China probe and key cancer drug misses initially overshadowed a profit beat.
• NVS
  ’ net sales jumped 15% from last year as its breast cancer treatment Kisqali spiked 52%, powering an outlook lift — whilePFE
  leaned into $7.7B in cost cuts to deliver a 10% EPS bump.

Trade fever: With Trump threatening pharmaceutical tariffs “very shortly,” executive commentary was also split like a pill. AstraZeneca’s CEO pushed back, stating, “A better incentive … is to have a great tax policy that incentivizes companies to invest in the [US].” In contrast, Swiss-owned Novartis announced a $23B US investment to build ten facilities over the next five years. Pfizer remained neutral, declaring, “We are unable to predict [impacts] at this time.” For pharmaceutical investors, the prescription remains unclear, but volatility is guaranteed.