Meta Platforms (META) started the week plumbing share price lows not seen since 2015 while large cap biotech stalwarts Gilead Sciences (GILD) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) each reached new highs for the year following a beat and raise.
Sleepy pharma giant Sanofi (SNY) posted a beat and raise of their own in part aided by a ~10% currency tailwind. Merck (MRK) and Bristol Myers (BMY) followed suit with pharmaceutical earnings beats.
Even biotech companies that missed, such as BioMarin Pharmaceuticals (BMRN), saw muted downside as full year numbers were reiterated. Argenx (ARGX) reported above consensus revenues for Vyvgart, a closely watched newly launched Fc receptor blocker.
ARGX disclosed $131 million in sales this quarter which was only its third since approval, making it one of the better performing drug launches in the past 10 years.
Clearly earnings results continue to validate the resilient nature of the pharmaceutical and biotech business model despite the challenging broader economic environment. Goldman Sachs reminded investors about a pending Halloween treat to partially offset the Fed's tricks as its the official start to the corporate buyback window. It is estimated such repurchases will provide ~$5 billion per day of equity demand through the end of the year.
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