Bayer Q4 Earnings Match Estimates, Xarelto and Eylea Pull Down Sales

Bayer AG BAYRY reported fourth-quarter 2025 core earnings of 18 cents per American Depositary Receipt (ADR), in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The company reported earnings of 28 cents per ADR in the year-ago quarter.

Core earnings per share of €0.62 was down 41% year over year, mainly due to the decline in earnings in the Pharmaceuticals and Crop Science divisions.

Total sales in the reported quarter were $13.31 billion, down 2.5% on a reported basis, and missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $13.41 billion.

On a currency and portfolio-adjusted basis, sales were up 2.9% year over year.

Shares of Bayer have surged 66.4% in the past year compared with the industry’s gain of 9.1%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

All growth rates mentioned below are on a year-over-year basis after adjusting for currency and portfolio changes.

BAYRY’s Q4 Results in Detail

Bayer reports under three segments, namely Crop Science, Pharmaceuticals and Consumer Health.

Crop Science sales increased 6.3% to €5.4 billion. Within this segment, Corn Seed & Traits sales surged 28.5%, driven by the resolution of a licensing agreement in North America and strong business performance in Latin America. In the Herbicides business, sales were down 2.9% due to significant declines in non-glyphosate-based products in North America and Asia/Pacific. Nonetheless, glyphosate-based products posted strong sales growth, driven by higher volumes across all regions.

Fungicide sales were down 8.9% year over year as the business was mainly affected by substantial volume declines in Asia/Pacific and North America. Soybean Seed & Traits sales increased 5.7%, driven by continued strong adoption of Intacta 2 Xtend in Latin America.  The Insecticides business decreased 13.9% as business was mainly down in Latin America amid increased competitive pressure from generics. The Vegetable Seeds business was up 14%, driven by higher volumes and prices.

The Pharmaceutical segment sales increased 1.7% to €4.5 billion as gains in Nubeqa and Kerendia were offset by significant declines for Xarelto due to patent expiration and lower Eylea sales.

Sales of the ophthalmology drug Eylea decreased 11.9% to €702 million, impacted by competitive and pricing pressure from generics.

Nonetheless, the launch of Eylea 8 mg, which allows for extended treatment intervals, helped offset the decline and supported overall sales. Eylea 8 mg accounted for around 38% of overall Eylea sales.

Please note that Bayer’s HealthCare unit co-develops Eylea with Regeneron REGN, which records net product sales of Eylea and Eylea 8 mg in the United States. BAYRY records net product sales of Eylea outside the country. REGN records its share of profits/losses in connection with the sales of Eylea outside the United States.

Nubeqa (for cancer) sales surged 68.8% to €702 million, recording gains in all regions.

Sales of oral anticoagulant Xarelto, co-developed with Johnson & Johnson JNJ, plunged 37% to €521 million due to competitive pressure from generics, especially in Europe and Japan.

In the U.S. market, Xarelto is marketed by J&J. Bayer earns license revenues from JNJ for Xarelto sales in the United States.

Sales of the Mirena product family (long-term contraceptive) gained 5.5%.

Kerendia sales (for the treatment of chronic kidney disease associated with type 2 diabetes and heart failure) skyrocketed 108.7%, fueled by a substantial rise in volumes in the United States and China.

Sales of Aspirin Cardio and Stivarga declined significantly, with business primarily down in China.

Consumer Health sales were down 4.6% to €1.5 billion in the fourth quarter due to a decline in sales at the Allergy & Cold business (-10.7%) that was primarily attributable to a soft cold season in North America. Sales also decreased at Nutritionals (-4.1%), Dermatology (-3.3%) and Pain & Cardio (-4.3%), with business mainly down in Asia/Pacific amid a challenging market environment. Meanwhile, the Digestive Health business sales rose, driven by gains in Europe and North America.

BAYRY’s 2025 Results

Revenues totaled $51.5 billion, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $53.2 billion. On a reported basis, sales were down 2.2% from 2024.

While the Pharmaceutical business drove momentum, business improved in the Crop Science segment. However, the Consumer Health business suffered from market softness in the United States and China.

Core earnings per ADR of $1.39 also fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.41.

BAYRY’s 2026 Guidance

On a currency-adjusted basis, Bayer expects to generate sales in the range of €45-€47 billion in 2026. For the Crop Science Division, it expects currency and portfolio-adjusted sales growth to be flat to +3%. For the Pharmaceuticals Division, Bayer expects currency and portfolio-adjusted sales growth to be flat to +3%. Consumer Health sales growth is projected to be flat to +4%.

Core EPS is projected to be in the band of €4.30-€4.80.

Our Take on BAYRY’s Q4 Performance

While Bayer’s fourth-quarter results missed on sales, the company’s turnaround in 2025 was phenomenal.

Bayer’s new products, such as prostate cancer drug Nubeqa and kidney disease drug Kerendia, continue to maintain their impressive momentum in the Pharmaceutical division and offset the negative impact of a decline in Xarelto sales.

Eylea sales continue to face pressure from generics; however, the introduction of Eylea 8 mg, with its extended dosing intervals, has partially offset the decline and supported overall performance.

Label expansion of key drugs and approval of additional drugs will further boost sales from this business. The recent FDA approval of elinzanetant for the treatment of moderate to severe menopause-related vasomotor symptoms, under the brand name Lynkuet, is a significant boost for the company.

The FDA recently granted accelerated approval to Hyrnuo (sevabertinib) for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer whose tumors have human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 tyrosine kinase domain activating mutations, as detected by an FDA-approved test, and who have received a prior systemic therapy.

Encouraging developments in the Roundup litigation have lifted investor sentiment. Bayer acquired the Roundup weedkiller through its 2018 buyout of Monsanto. Since then, the company has faced numerous lawsuits alleging that Monsanto’s herbicide, whose active ingredient is glyphosate, caused cancer.

Monsanto has now reached an agreement with leading plaintiffs’ law firms on a proposed class settlement related to the glyphosate litigation. This follows the decision by the Supreme Court of the United States to hear Bayer’s case, marking a positive development for the company.

However, BAYRY anticipated that litigation impacts would burden its cash position in 2026.

Bayer’s Zacks Rank

BAYRY currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.