Blueprint Medicines Corp.

Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) and Bain Capital have created an independent biopharmaceutical company to develop immunology therapies for autoimmune diseases with “significant unmet needs”. The newly formed company, launched with a $300m financing commitment led by Bain, has in-licensed five investigational immunology drugs from BMS. This includes afimetoran, an oral TLR7/8 inhibitor currently being evaluated in a phase 2 trial for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and BMS-986322, an oral TYK2 inhibitor that has already established proof-of-concept in a phase 2 plaque psoriasis study. The new company’s pipeline also consists of BMS-986326, an IL2 fusion protein currently being studied in early-stage trials for SLE and atopic dermatitis, as well as BMS-986481 and BMS-986498, two phase 1-ready biologics targeting the IL18 and IL10 pathways, respectively. Julie Rozenblyum, senior vice president, business development at BMS, said: “These assets have significant potential, and we are confident that this new company will drive their development to ensure greater impact for patients.” BMS will retain an almost 20% equity stake in the yet-to-be-named company, and will be eligible to receive royalties and milestone payments tied to the success of each asset. Daniel Lynch, who serves as chairman of the board for companies including Xilio Therapeutics, SpringWorks Therapeutics, Blueprint Medicines and bluebird bio, has been appointed as executive chairman of the new company’s board of directors and interim chief executive officer. He will be joined by Robert Plenge, executive vice president and chief research officer at BMS, alongside Bain’s Nicholas Downing, Adam Koppel and Andrew Kaplan, who will all sit on the new company’s board of directors. Commenting on his latest venture, Lynch said: “This is a unique opportunity to build an innovative biotech company with a strong scientific foundation and differentiated development capabilities. “I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to leverage my background and experience to contribute to the success of the company as it seeks to develop much-needed new therapies, and I look forward to supporting BMS and Bain Capital in the build-out of the company’s operations.”

Bengaluru: France's Sanofi said on Thursday that it expects annual sales to grow by high single-digit percentage, helped by strong demand for its anti-inflammatory drug Dupixent, as well as vaccines and newer treatments. It had previously forecast annual sales to grow by mid-to-high single-digit percentage at constant currency rates. The drugmaker confirmed it expects earnings to grow by a low double-digit percentage this year, but said the forecast now includes all expenses from its newly acquired businesses. Sanofi has significantly amped up its R&D expenditure in recent years and plans to be more active with acquisitions as it looks to build its next wave of growth drivers beyond its asthma drug Dupixent. It recently closed its up to $9.5 billion acquisition of Blueprint Medicines, a maker of rare immunology disease treatments. But investor hopes remain high for the anti-inflammatory drug Dupixent, the company's main growth driver, especially since it was approved for a common lung condition called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease last year. Sales of Dupixent, which it makes with partner Regeneron , rose 21.1% to 3.83 billion euros ($4.38 billion), compared to 3.74 billion euros expected on average by analysts in a company-provided poll. Chief Financial Officer Francois-Xavier Roger said that outside of the U.S., sales of the drug exceeded 1 billion euros. "We are very confident in our sales target of around 22 billion euros in 2030," Roger said about the drug. Quarterly business operating income, excluding one-off items, came in at 2.46 billion euros, below the average analyst estimate of 2.57 billion euros in a poll posted on the company's website. Sanofi said higher research costs and higher profit sharing with its partner Regeneron weighed on its earnings during the quarter. Vaccines sales rose a currency-adjusted 10% to 1.21 billion euros in the quarter, ahead of a 1.14 billion euro analyst consensus. ($1 = 0.8740 euros) (Reporting by Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

Dupixent generated sales of €3.8bn ($4.35bn) for the big pharma company in the quarter, growing 21.1% over the same period in 2024. Credit: nitpicker via Shutterstock.com. Sanofi rode the growing sales wave for blockbuster immunology drug Dupixent (dupilumab) in Q2 but reported lower-than-expected profits after outlaying money to develop new treatments. Dupixent generated sales of €3.8bn ($4.35bn) for the company in the quarter, growing 21.1% over the same period in 2024. Sanofi expanded the sales reach of the drug with approvals in the lucrative chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) market. Dupixent’s success pushed Sanofi’s total net sales to €9.9bn, up 10% at constant exchange rate (CER). The French drugmaker said it expects annual sales growth in the high single-digits at constant currency rates, compared to a previous forecast of mid- to high-single-digit growth. In a conference call on 31 July, chief financial officer François-Xavier Roger said that whilst tariffs were not modelled into the guidance, little impact is expected on financials in 2025. Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson said: “Eight years after market introduction, Dupixent grew by more than 20%, supported by the COPD launch. Based on strong sales performance in H1, we are refining our 2025 sales guidance to the upper end of our previous range. At the same time, we confirm our guidance of a strong business EPS rebound, which now includes all expenses from newly acquired businesses.” Sanofi confirmed it hopes to complete a €5bn share buyback programme in 2025, adding that around 80% has been repurchased to date. However, despite progressing its ownership control, earnings per share rose 1.9% to €1.59, lower than the €1.65 analysts estimated. Shares in Sanofi fell 1% at market open to €84.70 on the Paris exchange following the Q2 report posting, despite the strong growth for Dupixent. GlobalData Strategic Intelligence US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate? Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis. By GlobalData Learn more about Strategic Intelligence The profit miss was primarily due to an increase in research and development (R&D) expenses. Sanofi invested €1.9bn into the department as it seeks new drugs and vaccines to succeed Dupixent, wary of its outlook becoming too reliant on sales for the product. The R&D spending represented a 17.7% jump compared to Q2 last year. Sanofi also looked beyond in-house development in efforts to bolster its pipeline – the pharma company has had a busy July in the acquisition space. In July, the drugmaker concluded its buyout of Blueprint Medicines for $9.1bn and agreed to acquire vaccine developer Vicebio for an upfront payment of $1.5bn. In addition, Sanofi bought Dren Bio’s bispecific antibody for $1.9bn in March 2025 and made a push into Alzheimer’s with a $470m deal for Vigil Neuroscience in May. Despite M&A buzz, Sanofi shares have declined this year in comparison to other big pharma companies. This has been primarily due to vaccine regulation uncertainty in the US. Alongside the company’s pipeline diversification strategy, Duxipent looks set to supply a healthy financial outlook for Sanofi. Analysis by GlobalData forecasts sales of €23.8bn by 2031. This is based on rising uptake for the drug and further indications it’s set to gain approval in. GlobalData analysts said Dupixent addressed a biologics gap in the COPD market at the time of approval. Pharmaceutical Technology Excellence Awards - The Benefits of Entering Gain the recognition you deserve! The Pharmaceutical Technology Excellence Awards celebrate innovation, leadership, and impact. By entering, you showcase your achievements, elevate your industry profile, and position yourself among top leaders driving pharmaceutical advancements. Don’t miss your chance to stand out—submit your entry today! Nominate Now