Major pharmaceutical companies have reported their results in succession. While Shionogi doubled its net profit, Takeda Pharmaceutical swung to a final loss. Kyowa Kirin and Eisai also posted strong results, highlighting the growing divide within the industry.
Results from Japanese pharmaceutical companies have been announced in succession. Shionogi's consolidated net profit for the first quarter of the fiscal year ending March 2027 rose 2.5-fold from the same period a year earlier to ¥97.7 billion. Kyowa Kirin's net profit for the same period increased 87.6% to ¥30.6 billion, while Eisai's net profit for the April-June quarter rose 26%, with strong results standing out among both major and mid-sized companies.
In contrast, Takeda Pharmaceutical's consolidated final profit and loss for the fiscal year ending March 2026 swung to a ¥152.3 billion loss. Its net profit forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2027 was ¥166 billion, down 13% from the previous fiscal year and below market expectations. The simultaneous emergence of strong and weak results highlights the growing divide within the industry.
IQVIA's analysis of the overall market structure projects Japan's market to have an annual average growth rate of between -2% and +1% from 2022 to 2026, making it the only sluggish market among the major developed economies. Drug price revisions, the impact of generic drugs and currency movements have been cited as factors, and the gap with the growth rate of the global market is widening.
The view is that the difference between companies with product portfolios capable of competing in global markets and those heavily dependent on the domestic market will become more pronounced. Attention will now turn to the effectiveness of strategies such as maintaining earnings after patent expirations, pursuing external alliances and M&A, and differentiating products in specific fields.