Organon results beat estimates on demand for women heath products, biosimilars

(Reuters) - Organon & Co reported better-than-expected second-quarter results on Tuesday, helped by strong demand for its women's heath products and biosimilar drugs, sending the healthcare firm's shares up about 8%.

The company posted quarterly revenue of $1.61 billion, beating analysts' average estimate of $1.57 billion.

Revenue from its Women's Health segment rose 8% to $438 million, as sales of oral contraceptive Nexplanon jumped 12% to $214 million.

"In the United States, the Dobbs decision has driven an increase in demand from patients obtaining Nexplanon through providers under the 340B program, which is a more highly discounted channel," the company said in a conference call.

In the case known as as Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the U.S. Supreme Court in June last year overturned a ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion.

Revenue at the company's biosimilar unit increased 14%, primarily driven by Renflexis, a copycat version of autoimmune diseases' treatment Remicade.

Organon and partner Samsung Bioepis in July launched Hadlima, a biosimilar for AbbVie's blockbuster arthritis drug, Humira, at $1,038 per month, an 85% discount to the original treatment cost.

The biosimilar is being evaluated for the interchangeability designation, which allows patients to switch between the reference product and a copycat version without approvals from the prescribing physician.

Organon said it expects the interchangeability indication for the drug, which met the goals in a recent trial, by next summer.

The company said it expects revenue from its Established Brands franchise to be flat for 2023 after a 2% dip in second-quarter sales.

Organon now expects annual revenue of $6.25 billion to $6.45 billion, compared with its earlier forecast of $6.15 billion to $6.45 billion. Analysts estimate full-year revenue of $6.28 billion.

Excluding items, the company reported a profit of $1.31 for the quarter, compared with analysts' average estimate of 99 cents.

(Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)