Published - May 03, 2022 @ 4:01 PM (EET)

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Boosted by sales of its COVID-19 vaccine and antiviral Paxlovid, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) posted better-than-expected first-quarter earnings Tuesday.

Net income for the quarter came in at $7.8 billion, or $1.37 a share, up from $4.8 billion in the year-earlier period. Respectively, revenue for the pharmaceutical giant grew 77% to more than $25 billion.

Adjusted earnings grew 72% to $1.62 per share compared to the year-earlier period.

For the first time since Pfizer launched its COVID-19 vaccine and pill, the U.S. drugmaker maintained its sales forecast, a sign that rapid demand has slowed in the past few quarters.

The company said it expects $22 billion in sales of its COVID pill Paxlovid and reiterated its forecast of $32 billion in sales from the BioNTech vaccine.

"Overall, we expect the recent trends to expand access (to Paxlovid), s well as inquiries received from governments as the virus mutates and causes spikes in infections around the world, to result in increased orders in the coming months." - Chief Executive Officer, Albert Bourla of Pfizer.

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For full-year 2022, the company is still projecting $98 billion to $102 billion in total sales.

Though the drugmaker's first-quarter results were generally solid, many investors were mainly concerned with Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine and treatment options.

Yet, without these two products, revenue would have been up just 2%, begging the question of to what extent Pfizer's financial results will normalize as the future course of the pandemic plays out.

Several companies adjusted their forecasts following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's request to include expenses from milestone payments and acquisitions.

Pfizer said it now projects a full-year adjusted profit of $6.25 to $6.45 per share, lower than its previous forecast of $6.35 to $6.55.

In volatile premarket trading Tuesday, shares of Pfizer were down less than 1%.  

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