Takeda Q2 2024: Fruquintinib Overseas Sales Reach 23.1 Billion Yen, Full-Year Sales Forecast Upgraded

Takeda has announced its H1 results for the 2024 fiscal year: 

As of September 30, 2024, Takeda's H1 total revenue was approximately 2.384 trillion yen (about 16.6 billion USD). At actual exchange rates (AER), Takeda's revenue grew by 13.4%; at constant exchange rates (CER), it grew by 5%. 

Overall, Takeda's performance in the first half of the year was strong, and it has upgraded its full-year forecast and guidance.

Takeda's growth and the performance of its marketed product portfolio were robust, with product sales increasing by 18.7% (at CER), accounting for 47% of total revenue, indicating a promising outlook for restoring sustainable revenue and profit growth in the short term.

FRUZAQLA

According to Takeda's financial report, Fruquintinib (Fruzaqla) recorded sales of 23.1 billion yen (approximately 151 million USD, an increase of 12%) in H1 2024, highlighting the drug's prospects and potential for strong revenue growth in the future. 

Sales of Fruquintinib exceeded expectations, with significant growth in the U.S. market. In the U.S.: the market share for 4L+ mCRC reached 29%, and for 3L+ mCRC reached 10%.

After being approved for marketing in the U.S. in November 2023, Fruquintinib expanded its approval scope, receiving marketing authorization from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) in September 2024 for the treatment of previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer patients.

Fruquintinib (Fruzaqla) was initially developed by Hutchison MediPharma, a subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa. It is a highly selective VEGFR-1/2/3 kinase inhibitor that was approved in September 2018 in China for the treatment of colorectal cancer. The product was developed in collaboration with Eli Lilly and is marketed under the brand name ELUNATE?. 

In January 2023, Takeda signed an exclusive licensing agreement with Hutchison Whampoa to obtain exclusive rights to further develop, commercialize, and manufacture Fruquintinib outside of mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau.

In November 2023, Fruquintinib was approved for marketing in the U.S. for the treatment of previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer, becoming the first and only highly selective inhibitor targeting all three VEGF receptor kinases approved for this indication, regardless of the patient's biomarker status.

FY 2024 Outlook

Takeda's Chief Financial Officer, Milano Furuta, commented: “We are raising our full-year outlook for FY 2024, reflecting stronger-than-expected performance in the first half and updated annual foreign exchange assumptions. The full-year guidance reflects our intention to increase R&D investments in the second half to support our late-stage product pipeline. 

We remain confident in achieving sustainable growth through our growth and released products, as well as our promising late-stage pipeline. We will continue to drive initiatives to improve our core operating profit margin starting in FY 2025, in line with our mid-30% target.”