07.16.21
This year’s Top 20 Pharma and Biopharma firms reported pharma revenues of nearly $620 billion based on 2020 sales—relatively flat compared to the year before, due to the impact of COVID-19.
Not surprisingly, COVID dominated the headlines during the year. In March 2020, companies such as Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Bristol-Myers Squibb, among others, officially announced the postponement of clinical trials that were underway to focus on the coronavirus. According to the research of clinicaltrials.gov, around 2522 clinical trials were suspended, and 1099 trials got postponed between the months of January and May 2020.
In addition to the postponement of R&D projects, fewer hospital and doctor visits during the pandemic led to the reduced demand for pharmaceuticals that affected the growth of the market. However, the shift during the year away from traditional R&D endeavors to focus on finding a cure for the global pandemic helped offset any negative impact.
This culminated in perhaps the most significant news of the year when Pfizer’s work with BioNTech to develop and deliver the world’s first Covid-19 vaccine came to fruition in Dec. 2020. From the initial announcement that it was partnering with BioNTech to the day Pfizer received FDA’s EUA took just 269 days—an unprecedented pace of development. In addition to this remarkable achievement, many of the companies featured in the following pages have their own Covid success stories. We hope you enjoy!
Tim Wright, Editor
twright@rodmanmedia.com
Top 20 Pharma and Biopharma Companies (Based on 2020 Pharma/Biopharma Sales, in $U.S. Millions)
01. Roche $50,431
02. Novartis $48,659
03. Merck & Co. $47,994
04. AbbVie $45,804
05. Johnson & Johnson $45,572
06. Bristol-Myers Squibb $42,518
07. Pfizer $41,908
08. Sanofi $38,870
09. GlaxoSmithKline $32,637
10. Takeda $28,911
11. AstraZeneca $26,617
12. Amgen $25,424
13. Gilead $24,689
14. Eli Lilly & Co. $24,540
15. Novo Nordisk $19,404
16. Boehringer-Ingelheim $17,705
17. Teva $16,659
18. Bayer $14,037
19. Biogen $13,445
20. Astellas $11,338
Contributors
Editor: Tim Wright
Managing Editor: Kristin Brooks
Associate Editor: Charles Sternberg
*Profile information is sourced from each company’s annual report along with press releases distributed throughout the year. Pharma/biopharmaceutical sales are the primary factor in the rankings, however results may include animal heath sales where applicable and other smaller division sales. Large medical device, diagnostics, and consumer care division revenues have been excluded from the rankings.
Not surprisingly, COVID dominated the headlines during the year. In March 2020, companies such as Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Bristol-Myers Squibb, among others, officially announced the postponement of clinical trials that were underway to focus on the coronavirus. According to the research of clinicaltrials.gov, around 2522 clinical trials were suspended, and 1099 trials got postponed between the months of January and May 2020.
In addition to the postponement of R&D projects, fewer hospital and doctor visits during the pandemic led to the reduced demand for pharmaceuticals that affected the growth of the market. However, the shift during the year away from traditional R&D endeavors to focus on finding a cure for the global pandemic helped offset any negative impact.
This culminated in perhaps the most significant news of the year when Pfizer’s work with BioNTech to develop and deliver the world’s first Covid-19 vaccine came to fruition in Dec. 2020. From the initial announcement that it was partnering with BioNTech to the day Pfizer received FDA’s EUA took just 269 days—an unprecedented pace of development. In addition to this remarkable achievement, many of the companies featured in the following pages have their own Covid success stories. We hope you enjoy!
Tim Wright, Editor
twright@rodmanmedia.com
Top 20 Pharma and Biopharma Companies (Based on 2020 Pharma/Biopharma Sales, in $U.S. Millions)
01. Roche $50,431
02. Novartis $48,659
03. Merck & Co. $47,994
04. AbbVie $45,804
05. Johnson & Johnson $45,572
06. Bristol-Myers Squibb $42,518
07. Pfizer $41,908
08. Sanofi $38,870
09. GlaxoSmithKline $32,637
10. Takeda $28,911
11. AstraZeneca $26,617
12. Amgen $25,424
13. Gilead $24,689
14. Eli Lilly & Co. $24,540
15. Novo Nordisk $19,404
16. Boehringer-Ingelheim $17,705
17. Teva $16,659
18. Bayer $14,037
19. Biogen $13,445
20. Astellas $11,338
Contributors
Editor: Tim Wright
Managing Editor: Kristin Brooks
Associate Editor: Charles Sternberg
*Profile information is sourced from each company’s annual report along with press releases distributed throughout the year. Pharma/biopharmaceutical sales are the primary factor in the rankings, however results may include animal heath sales where applicable and other smaller division sales. Large medical device, diagnostics, and consumer care division revenues have been excluded from the rankings.