As the market for GLP-1 injections continues to grow, BD aims to ride that wave by providing drugmakers with its prefilled syringes.
Biologic medications—including those blockbusters for diabetes and weight-loss—now account for more than 40% of the company’s total pharmaceutical systems revenue, CEO Tom Polen said on BD’s quarterly earnings call with investors.
“Since 2023, BD has been the chosen partner for 19 out of the 23 new biologic drug approvals that use a prefilled syringe,” Polen added. “Second, as we consider the significant clinical potentials of GLP-1s, the strength of BD's innovation in this category, and our previously announced capacity expansion—we view GLP-1 drug delivery as a potential $1 billion product category by 2030.”
That includes working with companies on both sides of a molecule. BD has contracts covering novel GLP-1s that are currently making their way through clinical trials, as well as more than 40 agreements for biosimilars, spanning pens, auto-injectors and syringes—including competitors for early-generation GLP-1s that are slated to enter the market within the next year.
“We believe that no other company in medtech is better positioned than BD to capitalize on this trend,” he said.
“Outside of GLP-1s, our customers are working to develop next-generation biologics that have the potential to revolutionize care and conditions like Alzheimer's, certain immunological disorders and types of cancer,” he said. “Many of these are extremely complex molecules and proteins that will involve significantly greater volumes for injection, and higher viscosities compared to therapies presently available in the market.”
For the second quarter of this year, BD’s pharmaceutical systems arm reported double-digit growth in sales of prefilled biologic drug delivery devices; however, those gains were offset by customers reducing their inventories of anticoagulants and vaccines. Overall, the division posted $437 million in revenue, up 8.3% when accounting for currency exchanges.
As a whole, the company’s adjusted revenue reached about $5.06 billion for an increase of 5.2% compared to the same period in 2023. Medical sales accounted for about half, at $2.56 billion—driven in part by the return of its Alaris connected infusion pump to the market—while BD’s life sciences and interventional segments posted $1.26 billion and $1.24 billion, respectively.
Meanwhile, BD is still awaiting the closure of its $4.2 billion deal to acquire the critical care business of Edwards Lifesciences, which includes patient monitoring technology as well as artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Announced in June, the assets in play brought in over $900 million in 2023 revenue, with devices placed among more than 10,000 hospitals.
“Critical care significantly advances our connected care strategy to use AI and digital tools to help clinicians deliver more efficient and higher quality care,” Polen said on the call. “Additionally, it adds a high-growth business that is immediately accretive to margins and earnings.”
“Our connected medication management portfolio, which includes Alaris, is just one example of how BD is at the forefront of combining AI, automation and robotics to improve the core processes that run healthcare,” he said. “Today, BD has a $4 billion-plus business in healthcare automation and informatics AI, and we'll increase this to over $5 billion as we complete the acquisition.”
“Looking ahead to 2030, we view healthcare process automation and informatics AI as having the potential to become a business exceeding $7 billion.”
For the remainder of 2024, BD narrowed its financial projections toward the lower end of its prior predicted range—landing on about $20.1 billion in revenue, instead of the previously forecasted zone between $20.1 billion and $20.3 billion, for ultimately about 5.0% to 5.25% growth.