Orion Corp. reported a 59% surge in second-quarter operating profit, driven by strong sales and royalty income from its blockbuster prostate cancer drug, Nubeqa.
The Finnish pharmaceutical company said operating profit for the April-to-June period rose to 104.6 million euros from 65.8 million euros a year earlier, as net sales increased 27% to 416.5 million euros.
"Operating profit increased faster than net sales mainly due to the growth of Nubeqa® royalties," President and CEO Liisa Hurme said in a statement.
The results follow recent U.S. and European regulatory backing for an expanded use of Nubeqa, which Orion developed with its partner Bayer, for treating metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer.
Citing the strong performance, Orion raised its full-year forecast earlier in July.
The company now expects full-year operating profit of 400 million to 500 million euros on net sales of 1.63 billion to 1.73 billion euros.
According to the company, this forecast does not include a potential 180 million euro milestone payment from Bayer related to Nubeqa sales, which could be received in 2025 or 2026.
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