The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.
(Questions from industry analysts are provided in full, but answers are omitted - download the transcript to see the full question-and-answer session)
Question: Trung Huynh - UBS Equities - Analyst
: Just there in your prepared remarks, you noted your guidance absorbs the potential price changes this year based on the letter you
received from President Trump on July 31. That talks about impacting Medicaid with MFN. Does that imply you think something is
going to happen this year? And if so, what's your broad assumption so we can kind of quantify that hit on your revenues and EPS.
And then can you perhaps just give us your state of the union on the recent developments with MFN and tariffs?
And then just on the CDC recommendations for the vaccines. There was a reduced recommendation in May. The payer pullback or
broader adult covered vaccinations. So just how are you sizing the '25 to '26 fall season versus last year? And can you comment on
any progress with state mandates or payer negotiations to stabilize that coverage?
Question: Christopher Schott - JPMorgan - Analyst
: All right, great. Thanks for the questions and congrats on the quarter. Just two for me. First on BD and capital allocation. Just what's
driving the slightly lower target leverage for the company going forward? I think you lowered it by about a half turn or so. I just was
looking for any color there.
And just on the BD approach, is the approach here still to target a couple of smaller deals with that $10 billion to $15 billion of
capacity you've previously talked about? Or is the thought maybe looking at one larger one.
Last really quick one just to slip in with just the recent PD-1 VEGF deal, I know you're going to think about doing combos with some
of your ADCs. Will we see the Phase 3 data from those ADCs before you move forward? Or should we start to think about Pfizer
starting development of those programs prior to those readouts? Thank you.
Question: Alexandria Hammond - Wolfe Research LLC - Analyst
: Thanks for taking our question. I guess one on MFN, just given your recently announced DTC patient option for purchasing Eliquis,
how should we consider the applicability of this program to the remainder of your portfolio?
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AUGUST 05, 2025 / 2:00PM, PFE.N - Q2 2025 Pfizer Inc Earnings Call
Question: Mohit Bansal - Wells Fargo Securities LLC - Analyst
: Great, thank you very much for taking my question. Dave, I have a question regarding guidance. It does seem like you had quite a
good quarter this quarter. And -- there is FX tailwind as well as operational reasons here. So wondering what is driving the intact
guidance or even like not even like upping it to the higher end of the range, just would love to know your thought process in setting
this guidance at this point. Thank you.
Question: Courtney Breen - Bernstein Research - Analyst
: Thank you so much for taking the question. A couple for me. The first is on the efficiency that we're seeing kind of in your operating
model and particularly around SG&A. It would be great if you're able to kind of give us some extra context around kind of where you
kind of reallocating and investing versus where you're able to pull back and kind of some more context and detail and color around
that, both within the US and ex US? And then secondarily, you've given us somewhat detail in terms of M&A and the $13 billion
range, but can you give us a little bit more insight on the priorities?
I know you've talked about kind of the obesity opportunity or cardiometabolic opportunity and immunology being areas of interest.
Can you talk about kind of whether they still rank near the top or how you're seeing kind of opportunities out there that you might
be interested in? Thanks so much.
Question: David Risinger - Leerink Partners - Analyst
: Thanks very much. Yes. So Albert, thank you for helping lead discussions with the Administration to ensure the future success of US
biopharmaceutical innovation. Since you briefly mentioned competition from China, has Pfizer been helping the Administration
understand the very strong support that the Chinese government provides to local biotech companies based in China? I asked the
question given significant pressures on biotech companies in the United States. Thank you.
Question: Kerry Holford - Berenberg - Analyst
: Thank you, a couple of questions for me, please. Firstly, looking at ADCETRIS to Q2 performance was a little weaker than anticipated.
I understand these drugs are perhaps facing increased competitive pressures, we'll be interested to your strategy for reinvigorating
that growth of those assets ex US. And then secondly, a question on the guidance, specifically tax and if I missed this earlier. But
Dave, what has changed with regard to the tax outlook for this year? And how sustainable is this underlying 13% tax rate going
forward? Thank you.
Question: Evan Seigerman - BMO Capital Markets - Analyst
: Thank you so much for taking my question. Kind of a follow-up to the prior question. 1.5 years into the integration of Seagen, and
really aside from Padcev, what do you believe are the two or three assets that have the potential to really drive a positive IRR for the
$42 billion or so that you spent? And kind of a follow-up there is part of the market could SV capture in non-small cell lung cancer,
if and when eventually approved? Thank you.
Question: Carter Gould - Cantor Fitzgerald - Analyst
: Good morning. Thanks for taking the question. I'm going to go back to the policy side. I guess, Albert, should investors have any
expectation around a comprehensive deal that addresses the present objectives across MFN and tariffs, but also addresses the
industry's concerns around enforcing IP protection, compounding, parity, IRA implementation. And then separately, put up a solid
quarter year-on-year, but this is sort of the fourth quarter in a row where sequential growth was more muted or meager, is Vyndaqel
US growth behind us, and I guess an answer in that can help frame the push-pulls between price and competition? Thank you.
Question: Asad Haider - Goldman Sachs - Analyst
: Great. Thanks for taking the question. Albert, just one more, if I may, on the policy front. Just given the comments you just made
and then triangulating those back to your comments on MFN that it's now quantified and reflected into guidance to some extent,
maybe just talk about what could cause large swings to those expectations from here? Or is your high-level view that we are now
getting more granular around the central and potentially narrow range of outcomes directionally speaking? Thank you.
Question: Umer Raffat - Evercore ISI - Analyst
: Hi guys. Thanks for taking my question. So I'll spare the MFN question, but I did want to ask Albert, I feel like some of the points you're
making on this call regarding the China biotech ecosystem could possibly resonate with the Administration. But I guess, how is --
and I'm not even talking Pfizer specifically, but the industry broadly has been very active with a lot of out-licensing transactions to
find the next layer innovation. So I guess is Administration pushing back with sort of balancing those two? And then separately, on
your oncology side, I feel like this B6A trial in lung will obviously be very, very important.
And I was very intrigued to see that you shrunk the sample size from 670 down to 470, which presumably signals increased confidence.
And my question is, did you take any interim look to see how the is tracking?
Question: Rajesh Kumar - HSBC - Analyst
: Hi. Thank you for taking my questions. The first one is on -- you said you'll absorb the potential impact from the letter this year. Can
you confirm that if there were tariffs, et cetera, you can say the same about the next year as well. I know you don't have a guidance,
but in terms of how prepared you are with inventory, et cetera and the pricing dynamics. Do you think current consensus sort of
captures the effect for the next year?
The second one is on the balance sheet. Clearly, you are going with a lower financial gearing target and in effect, that gives you a
bit more leeway on a lot of things. When you think of capital allocation, do you think you need to add more types of assets in
oncology? Or would most of the balance sheet capacity be deployed in obesity, immunology, other areas that is if you have to deploy
capital in oncology or different indications or different mechanisms you still need to add, then would you be comfortable going
over the 2.7 times leverage? Thank you.
Question: Timothy Anderson - BofA Global Research - Analyst
: Thank you. I have a question on IRA. So you guys have two drugs where prices are being negotiated in the current year for
implementation in '27, that's Ibrance, XTANDI -- one fear that at least we've had is that the new administration may press harder per
bigger discount versus last year, potentially just to make a point. in general, not just for Pfizer product. So you're in the midst of those
negotiations. Any color you can provide such as how those discussions are lining up with what you expected before those negotiations
begin.
Question: Steve Scala - TD Cowen - Analyst
: Thank you very much, two questions. Two questions. The first one, I apologize, is on MFN. But you have quantified the assumed
impact of MFN in 2025, but you won't share your estimate. But I assume it's a big number, well above $500 million for Q4 alone and
maybe several times that, which implies a strikingly high number for 2026. And I'm just wondering whether you would walk that
number down.
Second for Dave, you noted the positive underlying operational performance year-to-date. You also noted the positive inflection in
FX year-to-date. Curious how the COVID expectations have changed. It seems they must have come down since revenue guidance
is flat or unchanged or something else in the business turned in a little bit light? Thank you.
Question: Terence Flynn - Morgan Stanley - Analyst
: Great. Thanks for taking the questions. Great. Maybe just two on the pipeline. Just for atirmociclib, I was wondering if we'll get an
update from the Phase 2 study on PFS potentially at San Antonio later this year? I know you've already committed moving into Phase
3, but I don't think we've seen anything on durability there. And then on LORBRENA, any thoughts about exploring that in the
adjuvant setting? Thank you.
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