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Photo courtesy of Novartis AG
Top 20 Pharma Companies Report



Last year (our 2005 edition), Pfizer was 47% ahead of its closest competitor in drug revenues ($46 billion to $31 billion), but that margin was shaved to 30% in 2005 as Pfizer sales dropped 4%. The company remains at #1 in our Top 20 Pharmaceutical rankings, with a $10 billion buffer between it and neck-and-neck competitors Sanofi-Aventis and GlaxoSmithKline, but for how long?

Roche posted the biggest dollar gains in 2005 revenues, up $2.8 billion (20%), thanks to a major contribution from Tamiflu (up $987 million in 2005).

At the lower end of our ranks, recent mergers in Japan have brought Astellas and Daiichi-Sankyo into the Top 20. Bayer’s acquisition of Schering AG will lead to another major jump next year, and more pressure placed on mid-tier firms.

Come to think of it, if a few of these “national champion” mergers come through—think GSK/AstraZeneca, and the long-anticipated Novartis/Roche combo—we could see a whole new lineup. . .
—Gil Y. Roth
Editor
Contributors

Editor:    Gil Y. Roth
Associate Editor:    Kristin Brooks
Contributing Editor:    Derek B. Lowe

Top 20 Pharmaceutical Companies

based on 2005 pharma revenues
1  Pfizer $44,284
2  Sanofi-Aventis $34,013
3  GlaxoSmithKline $33,976
4  AstraZeneca $23,950
5  Johnson & Johnson
 $22,322
6  Merck & Co.
 $21,874
7  Novartis $20,262
8  Roche $16,613
9  Bristol-Myers Squibb
 $15,254
10  Wyeth $14,280
11  Eli Lilly & Co.
 $13,781
12  Abbott Laboratories
 $13,300
13  Boehringer-Ingelheim $9,025
14  Takeda Pharmaceutical
 $9,019
15  Schering-Plough $8,759
16  Astellas Pharma
 $7,503
17  Daiichi-Sankyo $6,944
18  Novo Nordisk
 $5,643
19  Eisai $5,131
20  Bayer AG
 $5,065


Note: In all Top Company profiles, dollar amounts are in millions.