GSK Lifts Guidance After Turnover Beats Expectations

By Helena Smolak

GSK lifted its full-year guidance after first-quarter turnover rose and beating expectations, helped by higher sales in its vaccines and specialty medicines segment.

The British pharmaceutical giant said Wednesday that it now expects turnover growth this year toward the higher end of its previously guided 5% to 7% range. It now expects core operating profit growth of 9% to 11% compared with previous expectations of 7% to 10%, and anticipates core earnings per share growth of 8% to 10% compared with the previously guided 6%-9%.

First-quarter turnover rose to 7.36 billion pounds ($9.19 billion) from GBP6.95 billion the year prior, beating analysts' expectations of GBP7.07 billion. Sales of its recently launched respiratory syncytial virus vaccine Arexvy came to GBP182 million during the period.

Net profit fell to GBP1.05 billion from GBP1.49 billion the year prior, missing analysts' expectations of GBP1.15 billion. Core earnings per share--one of the company's preferred metrics, which strips out exceptional and other one-off items--rose 28% at constant exchange rates to 43.1 pence.

GSK declared a dividend of 15 pence for the first quarter, and expects to pay out a dividend of 60 pence for the full year.

Write to Helena Smolak at helena.smolak@wsj.com