Merck's Capvaxive Shows Strong Growth Amid Challenging Vaccine Market

Merck's new adult pneumococcal vaccine, Capvaxive, has demonstrated impressive sales growth in its third quarter, bucking the trend of declining vaccine revenues across the pharmaceutical industry. This development comes as other major vaccine manufacturers face headwinds in their vaccine divisions.

Capvaxive's Promising Performance

Capvaxive, the world's first pneumococcal vaccine designed specifically for adults, generated sales of $244 million in Q3, nearly doubling from $129 million in Q2. Since its launch and CDC recommendation for use in adults aged 50 and older in October 2024, Capvaxive has accumulated $530 million in sales over its first four quarters on the market.

Merck's Chief Financial Officer, Caroline Litchfield, lauded the vaccine's performance during the company's quarterly conference call, stating, "Capvaxive is off to a very strong start."

Industry-wide Vaccine Challenges

While Capvaxive shows promise, the broader vaccine market faces significant challenges:

• Sanofi reported an 8% decline in overall vaccine sales, attributed to lower vaccination rates and increased price competition for flu shots.
• GSK managed a modest 2% increase in global vaccine sales, despite a 15% decline in the U.S. market, primarily due to reduced demand for its shingles vaccine, Shingrix.
• Merck's other vaccines experienced sales declines, with HPV shot Gardasil down 24%, and the combined sales of ProQuad, MMR II, and Varivax dropping 3%.

Merck's Strategic Positioning

Merck is positioning Capvaxive as a strong alternative to Pfizer's dominant Prevnar 20. The company cites CDC epidemiologic data indicating that Capvaxive's 21 serotypes cover 84% of pneumococcal disease in adults 50 and older, compared to 52% for Prevnar 20's 20 serotypes. However, Merck acknowledges that no direct comparative efficacy studies have been conducted between the two vaccines.

As Merck prepares for the eventual loss of exclusivity for its cancer blockbuster Keytruda, the company is relying on new product launches to drive growth. Other notable performers in Merck's portfolio include:

• Winrevair, a pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) treatment, which saw sales surge 141% year-over-year to $360 million.
• Welireg, a cancer drug that generated $196 million in sales, up 42% from the previous year.
• Ohtuvayre, a newly acquired chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD) drug, though sales figures were not disclosed due to the recent completion of Merck's $10 billion acquisition of Verona Pharma.

Caroline Litchfield expressed optimism about the company's future, stating, "As we go into 2026, we are expecting solid top-line growth for our company, and that growth will be increasingly fueled by the number of new launches that we've had."