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AbbVie’s full-year net revenue increase was good, increasing 22.7% to $56.197 billion, but its full-year diluted earnings per share (EPS) blew that away with a whopping jump of 137.1% for the full year. 

The Chicago-based company reported full-year global net revenues from its Immunology Portfolio of $25.284 billion, popping 14.1% on a reported basis, with its mega-blockbuster drug Humira offering up $17.330 billion, an increase of 7.6% for U.S. revenue alone.

The company’s full-year global net revenue in Hematologic Oncology was $7.2 billion, an increase of 8.7% on a reported basis, driven by Imbruvica, which brought in $5.4 billion globally, an increase of 1.8%, most of it in the U.S., which was responsible for $4.321 billion of the total.

AbbVie’s Neuroscience Portfolio reported $5.927 billion, with global Botox Therapeutic net revenues of $2.451 billion. Botox as a cosmetic is a bigger driver of the company’s Aesthetics Portfolio, bringing in $2.232 billion of the total $5.233. AbbVie acquired the drug through its 2019 $63 billion acquisition of Allergan.

“We delivered another year of outstanding performance in 2021 with double-digit revenue and EPS growth that were well above our initial expectations,” said Richard A. Gonzalez, chairman and chief executive officer of AbbVie. “We are entering 2022 with significant momentum and expect our diverse set of growth assets, robust pipeline and excellent execution to deliver continued strong performance this year and over the long term.”

AbbVie also announced an exclusive strategic partnership with San Diego’s Plexium to develop and commercialize novel Targeted Protein Degradation (TPD) therapeutics for neurological conditions. The new partners will leverage AbbVie’s neuroscience capabilities with Plexium’s comprehensive TPD platform.

Under the collaboration, Plexium will run preclinical research for the companies’ targets. Once completed, AbbVie will have the option to select programs for more research and development. AbbVie is paying Plexium an undisclosed upfront fee and the latter will be eligible for additional milestones in addition to tiered royalties on any commercialized therapies. Plexium can also participate in product development and receive higher royalties. AbbVie will handle development and commercialization around the world of any drugs that emerge from the partnership.

“Our partnership with AbbVie allows us to strengthen our leadership position in Targeted Protein Degradation and Broaden our best-in-class capabilities into neurological diseases,” said Plexium President and CEO Percival Barretto-Ko. “Neuroscience is one of the most challenging therapeutic areas to develop new drugs, due to the complexity of the disease pathologies and limited number of modalities that have been successful. With our comprehensive platform and AbbVie’s expertise in this area, we are in a strong position to discover novel degraders against multiple high-value targets to ultimately improve the lives of patients.”

In addition to its therapeutic Botox treatment, AbbVie’s neuroscience portfolio includes Vraylar, which enjoyed $489 million in net revenues, an increase of 21.8% and Ubrelvy, which had net revenues of $183 million for the fourth quarter. Vraylar’s net revenues for the full year were $1.728 billion. Vraylar is used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar mania and bipolar depression. Ubrelvy is used to treat but not prevent migraine.

The company plans to present new data on Vuity (pilocarpine HCl ophthalmic solution) at the 2022 Association of Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Annual Meeting from May 1-4 in Denver, Colorado. Vuity is the first and only FDA-approved eye drop for presbyopia, which is age-related blurry near vision.

“The variety of data we will present will shed light on our continued commitment to innovate in the areas of presbyopia and glaucoma,” said Dr. Michael R. Robinson, M.D., vice president, global therapeutic area head, ophthalmology, AbbVie. “We are looking forward to unveiling important studies on both Vuity and Durysta to show the advances we are making for those living with these conditions.”

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