Bristol Myers’ legacy lift, Biogen’s blue skies and Regeneron’s murky outlook

An article from News roundup Bristol Myers’ legacy lift, Biogen’s blue skies and Regeneron’s murky outlook Investors are still waiting to see whether Bristol Myers and Regeneron’s pipelines will deliver, while Biogen was lifted by better-than-expected results for newer drugs like Leqembi and Skyclarys. Published May 1, 2026 Jacob Bell Lead Reporter Jonathan Gardner Senior Reporter Share Copy link Email LinkedIn X/Twitter Facebook Print License Add us on Google With quarterly earnings underway, BioPharma Dive is providing a snapshot of some companies’ results and how they’re being received by investors. Today, we’re offering insight into the latest numbers from Bristol Myers Squibb, Biogen and Regeneron. Bristol Myers’ legacy lift Bristol Myers Squibb delivered an earnings report on Thursday that analysts described as solid overall but also mixed, as a couple newer drugs disappointed while most of the pharmaceutical giant’s older products outperformed. Bristol Myers recorded $11.5 billion in revenue over the first three months of this year, a 3% increase from the same period in 2025. A little over half of the total came from the company’s “growth portfolio,” which is hallmarked by drugs like Opdivo, Yervoy, Orencia and Reblozyl, with the remainder coming from a “legacy portfolio.” According to Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Carter Gould, the revenue total was $572 million above the average analyst estimate, a beat “overwhelmingly driven” by this legacy group. The blood thinner Eliquis and the cancer medications Revlimid and Pomalyst were respectively 8%, 22% and 49% above consensus. Opdivo and Reblozyl, meanwhile, were each roughly 5% under. Gould wrote in a note to clients that the legacy portfolio’s performance, though important for near-term cash flows, is “peripheral” to investors’ “overriding focus” on a series of late-stage clinical trials set to readout in the coming months. The trials are testing some of Bristol Myers’ most closely watched drugs, including a new anticoagulant called milvexian as well as two blood cancer therapies known as iberdomide and mezigdomide. Another study is evaluating the company’s schizophrenia medication Cobenfy as a potential treatment for the psychosis tied to Alzheimer’s disease. Positive results could unlock a major market opportunity for a drug that’s off to a slower-than-expected sales start. Bristol Myers has “one of the most impactful clinical catalyst calendars in the second half of this year, with readouts that could support multiple blockbuster indications and meaningfully increase the company’s longer-term growth profile,” wrote Matt Phipps, of William Blair. Bristol Myers shares were up 5% at Thursday’s market’s close. However, analysts believe the data coming in the back half of this year will have a much more significant impact on investor sentiment than earnings pumped up by aging franchises. Though the company is making progress, “we still think more needs to be proven out on the long term revenue trajectory, with the rubber meeting the road [in the fourth quarter] with a plethora of significant Phase 3 datasets,” wrote Sean McCutcheon, from the investment bank Raymond James. In its report, Bristol Myers affirmed previously issued 2026 financial guidance. Revenue should be about $46 billion to $47.5 billion, and earnings per share should come in at $6.05 to $6.35. Numbers are already trending toward the upper end of those ranges, the company said. — Jacob Bell Biogen’s parting gray skies Biogen’s latest round of earnings outpaced Wall Street forecasts and fueled a roughly 5% hike to the biotechnology company’s shares on Wednesday. During the three-month period from January through March, Biogen posted $2.5 billion in total revenue and $3.57 in non-GAAP earnings per share. Those figures were above average analyst estimates of $2.25 billion and $2.91, according to TD Cowen. The beat stemmed, in good part, from better-than-expected performances of newer products like the Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi, the Friedreich's ataxia therapy Skyclarys and the multiple sclerosis medicine Tysabri. The three drugs respectively generated $168 million, $151 million and $441 million, reflecting increases of 74%, 17% and 16%. Biogen still warns that top-line revenue will decline by a mid-single-digit percentage this year compared to 2025, as the company’s core multiple sclerosis business continues to erode. Even so, the fresh earnings indicated to at least some analysts that, after several tumultuous years, Biogen finally seems to be through the worst of the storm. “Tailwinds abound,” wrote Brian Abrahams, of RBC Capital Markets, in a note to clients. Abrahams highlighted Biogen’s recent $5.6 billion acquisition of Apellis Therapeutics, which, once closed, would hand the buyer two already approved, immune system-regulating drugs. Later this year, Biogen also expects to reveal data from a closely watched study of “BIIB080,” a kind of genetic medicine designed to reduce the production of an Alzheimer’s-linked protein called tau. While the RBC team remains cautious about BIIB080’s odds of success, they “see a string” of possibly positive catalysts elsewhere in Biogen’s pipeline, including two antibody drugs known as litifilimab and felzartamab. “Against this backdrop, we see investor debate on the stock as shifting away from the base business towards what could drive upside from here,” Eric Schmidt, an analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, wrote in his own client note. — Jacob Bell Regeneron’s mixed picture Regeneron’s first-quarter revenue and per-share earnings of $3.6 billion and $9.47, respectively, exceeded Wall Street forecasts. But shares nonetheless sank 6% Wednesday on a pair of updates for two drugs investors are keeping an eye on: a high dose version of its flagship eye medication Eylea, and an experimental cancer immunotherapy in advanced testing. Sales of “Eylea HD,” which Regeneron developed to protect its core business against biosimilars and other competitive threats, came in below analysts’ forecasts and totaled $468 million in the first quarter. Moreover, the launch of a pre-filled syringe of Eylea HD that’s easier for physicians to administer has been slowed by issues at a Catalent manufacturing plant in Indiana. Those delays are heightening pressure on Regeneron; Leerink Partners analyst David Risinger noted that five new Eylea biosimilars could launch in the second half of the year. Regeneron also revealed a setback for a cancer immunotherapy, fianlimab, that it’s long hoped can broaden the reach of its cancer drug business. That therapy, which takes aim at the immune “checkpoint” LAG-3, is close to an important Phase 3 readout in front-line metastatic melanoma. The study is testing a combination of fianlimab and another Regeneron immunotherapy called Libtayo against Merck & Co.’s Keytruda, and should produce results by the end of June. But ahead of that readout, Regeneron disclosed that Phase 2 data in lung cancer didn’t support further development. This setback is “unsurprising” given “prior signals” from Regeneron, wrote RBC’s Abrahams. Still, he and Leerink’s Risinger both lowered their share targets for Regeneron given the uncertainty surrounding the Eylea franchise and unclear pipeline progress. Investors will want “more visibility on where/when the prioritized internal R&D investment can manifest in differentiated blockbuster-potential programs,” wrote Abrahams, “especially after several years of perceived pipeline pivots.” Risinger added that his team hopes management will “pursue external transaction activity” to boost the company’s growth prospects. — Jonathan Gardner Add us on Google Share Copy link Email LinkedIn X/Twitter Facebook Print purchase licensing rights Filed Under: Biotech