By Ludwig Burger
FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Merck KGaA on Thursday reported a slight gain in third-quarter operating earnings that beat market expectations, benefiting from legislative changes in South America and the sale of a priority review voucher from the U.S. drugs regulator.
The German maker of pharmaceuticals and specialty materials said third-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), adjusted for special items, rose 3.1% to 1.67 billion euros ($1.95 billion), beating a consensus estimate from analysts of 1.56 billion euros.
Revenue edged 1% higher to 5.32 billion euros, also beating expectations, aided by rare cancer treatments acquired through the takeover of SpringWorks Therapeutics and demand for Merck’s biotech production gear. The company said it was burdened by currency effects during the quarter.
For the full year, the company said it expected adjusted EBITDA of 6 billion euros to 6.2 billion euros, compared with 6.1 billion euros in 2024, adding that the midpoint of the range was unchanged from its previous guidance.
It previously said EBITDA would grow 4% to 8%, excluding currency and portfolio effects.
Last month, the family-controlled company agreed to a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump to cut the cost of some fertilization treatments in exchange for protection from future tariffs.
Last month, Chief Financial Officer Helene von Roeder said Merck’s life science and electronics units were expected to improve gradually next year, while the healthcare business is expected to “temporarily moderate,” weighing on the company’s shares.
($1 = 0.8575 euros)
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Friederike Heine and Thomas Derpinghaus)
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