Regeneron, Eylea report lower-than-expected fourth-quarter U.S. preliminary sales By Reuters

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals corporate logo is seen on a building at the company’s Westchester campus in Tarrytown, New York, USA, September 17, 2020. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

(Reuters) – Regeneron (NASDAQ:) Pharmaceuticals on Monday reported preliminary fourth-quarter U.S. sales of its eye medication Eylea, which missed Wall Street expectations as the company’s blockbuster product faces pressure from rivals.

The company reported $1.34 billion in U.S. sales, and last week Wells Fargo analyst Mohit Bansal put Wall Street estimates for Eylea’s U.S. sales at $1.53 billion.

Developed jointly with Eylea Bayer AG (ETR:) has been driving Regeneron’s profits for years, but its sales have been under pressure, in part due to Roche’s Vabysmo winning U.S. approval in 2022.

Regeneron is pinning its hopes on a higher-dose version of Eylea. U.S. sales of this version amounted to about $123 million in the quarter, the company said. (This story has been corrected in paragraph 3 to say Roche’s Babismo was approved in 2022, not last year.)