Novartis 2024 Financial Report: Entresto $7.8 Billion, Radiopharmaceuticals Revenue Surpasses $2 Billion, China Market Grows by 21%

On January 31, Novartis released its 2024 performance report, showing annual revenue of $50.317 billion, a 12% increase year-over-year. Revenue from the China market reached $3.9 billion, growing by 21%.

Novartis currently focuses on four core therapeutic areas: cardiovascular-renal-metabolism, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology. The revenue for each area in 2024 was as follows: $8.576 billion (+36%), $9.293 billion (+21%), $4.750 billion (+31%), and $14.740 billion (+16%). Several blockbuster products are maintaining strong growth, driving overall performance improvements for Novartis, such as Entresto (sacubitril/valsartan), Cosentyx (secukinumab), Kesimpta (ofatumumab), Kisqali (ribociclib), Pluvicto (177Lu?PSMA?617), Leqvio (inclisiran), and Scemblix (asciminib).

Cardiovascular-Renal-Metabolism

In the cardiovascular-renal-metabolism sector, Novartis' flagship product, Entresto, has been on the market for 10 years and continues to see consistent growth, maintaining a double-digit annual growth rate. In 2024, it reached $7.822 billion in revenue (+31%). However, Entresto will face significant challenges in the future due to patent expiration. Novartis expects generic versions to enter the U.S. market in 2025, and Entresto is also on the first round of the U.S. Medicare price negotiation list, with a price reduction of 53% (effective in 2026).

Leqvio is another revolutionary drug from Novartis. As the world's first and only siRNA ultra-long-acting lipid-lowering drug, its convenience of administration—one injection every six months—provides a significant advantage. Since its launch, the drug has experienced rapid growth, reaching $754 million in 2024 (+114%).

Additionally, Novartis' new CFB inhibitor Fabhalta (efkampe) was approved in December 2023, and in August 2024, it was approved by the FDA for IgA nephropathy indications, making it the first complement drug approved for the treatment of IgA nephropathy. Novartis anticipates its sales potential to range from $3 billion to $8 billion.

Another Novartis IgA nephropathy drug, ETA antagonist EXV811 (aciquizumab), has also submitted market applications in China and the U.S. in 2024, further strengthening Novartis' competitive edge in the renal disease field.

Immunology

In the immunology field, the IL-17A monoclonal antibody Cosentyx generated $6.141 billion in sales, a 25% increase. New indications, including hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) and intravenous formulations, have provided new growth drivers for the drug. Phase III clinical studies for Cosentyx targeting polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and giant cell arteritis (GCA) are expected to release results in 2025, offering further growth opportunities. Novartis expects peak sales for Cosentyx to surpass $7 billion.

Two other key immunology products, Xolair (omalizumab) and Ilaris (canakinumab), also performed well, with respective sales of $1.643 billion (+15%) and $1.509 billion (+14%).

Neuroscience

In neuroscience, Kesimpta, the first self-administered CD20 monoclonal antibody for patients, continues to perform strongly in the market, with 2024 sales of $3.224 billion (+49%). Another neuroscience product, Zolgensma (OAV101), a one-time gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), saw sales of $1.214 billion, a 2% increase year-over-year.

Oncology

Oncology remains the largest revenue-generating area for Novartis, with strong performances from products like the CDK4/6 inhibitor Kisqali, radioligand therapy Pluvicto, and Scemblix (asciminib).

Novartis views Kisqali, a breast cancer drug, as its most important growth driver. Since its launch, Kisqali has maintained double-digit growth, with 2024 sales reaching $3.033 billion (+49%). Kisqali has also added two new indications in the U.S., covering earlier-stage HR+/HER2- breast cancer patients, driving additional growth. Novartis predicts Kisqali’s peak sales may exceed $8 billion.

Pluvicto, the highly anticipated radiopharmaceutical, achieved $1.392 billion in sales in 2024, a 42% increase, marking its first year exceeding $1 billion in sales since its 2022 launch. Another radiopharmaceutical, Lutathera (lutetium Lu-177 dotatate), generated $724 million in sales, a 20% increase year-over-year. The total revenue from these two radiopharmaceuticals was $2.116 billion in 2024.

In 2024, Novartis also submitted a market application for Pluvicto in China and invested approximately 600 million RMB to establish a radiopharmaceutical production facility, preparing for the subsequent product launches.

The novel chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) treatment drug Scemblix achieved sales of $689 million in 2024, an increase of 68%. This drug is the first FDA-approved allosteric inhibitor targeting the ABL myristoyl pocket. In October 2024, the FDA accelerated approval of the drug for first-line treatment of chronic-phase Philadelphia chromosome-positive CML (Ph+ CML-CP), expanding its indication from third-line therapy, which further broadened its applicability. Novartis views Scemblix as a key product with a sales potential of $3 billion to $8 billion.

Additionally, Novartis' JAK inhibitor Jakavi (ruxolitinib), in collaboration with Incyte, grew by 15%, with sales reaching $1.936 billion in 2024.

Acquisitions and Collaborations

In 2024, Novartis made significant strides in transactions and partnerships. It acquired MorphoSys for $2.9 billion, enhancing its oncology portfolio; acquired radiopharmaceutical company Mariana Oncology for $1.75 billion, strengthening its leadership in the radiopharmaceutical space; and acquired Kate Therapeutics for $1.1 billion, expanding its strategic footprint in neuroscience gene therapies.

Novartis also formed agreements with several companies in the areas of PROTAC, radiopharmaceuticals, RNA therapies, artificial intelligence, and more.

Throughout the year, Novartis achieved several innovative milestones in regulatory filings and key clinical research developments (see the chart below).

Looking ahead to 2025, Novartis expects net sales to grow by a mid- to high-single-digit percentage, with core operating income expected to grow by a high-single-digit to low-double-digit percentage.