Group sales up 5% at constant exchange rates, 1% in Swiss francs
• Pharmaceuticals Division sales up 4%, driven by oncology (HER2-positive breast cancer medicines, Avastin) and strong growth in immunology (Actemra, Xolair)
• Diagnostics Division sales up 6%, driven by Professional Diagnostics and Molecular Diagnostics
• Core earnings per share increased by 5% to 14.29 Swiss francs; up 7% excluding one-time double charge of the US Branded Prescription Drug fee
• Board proposes dividend increase of 3% to 8.00 Swiss francs, 28th consecutive year of dividend growth
• Outlook for 2015: Sales expected to grow low-to mid-single digit, at constant exchange rates. Core earnings per share targeted to grow at constant exchange rates ahead of sales. Roche expects to further increase its dividend in Swiss francs
Commenting on the Group’s results, Roche CEO Severin Schwan said: “We made good progress in 2014 with solid growth in both divisions driven by our newly launched launched medicines and diagnostic tests. In addition, we have now made ten targeted acquisitions to complement our existing portfolio in Pharma and Diagnostics. Initial demand for Esbriet, a breakthrough medicine in lung fibrosis which was recently launched in the US following the InterMune acquisition, is strong. In Diagnostics, we successfully launched the cobas 6800/8800 platform, which brings the automation of molecular testing to a new level. With our strong product portfolio and pipeline we are well positioned for the future.” Outlook for 2015 In 2015, Roche expects sales to grow low- to mid-single digit, at constant exchange rates. Core earnings per share are targeted to grow ahead of sales at constant exchange rates . Roche expects to further increase its dividend in Swiss francs. Building capabilities with strategic acquisitions Over the last ten months, Roche has made ten targeted acquisitions to complement its current product portfolio in both divisions, including InterMune, the developer of Esbriet for idiopathic lung fibrosis, and Seragon Pharmaceuticals, which is researching treatments for hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. In Diagnostics, acquisitions were made to expand into pointof-care molecular testing and to add new technologies in gene sequencing. In early 2015, Roche acquired Ariosa Diagnostics to enter the non-invasive prenatal and cell-free DNA testing markets. Roche also entered into a strategic partnership with Foundation Medicine in the field of molecular information and genomic analysis in oncology. The collaboration aims to advance personalised healthcare, by leveraging use of molecular information for comprehensive assessment of tumours.
