Here’s What Analysts Asked About Pfizer’s Strategy & Priorities on its Q1 2025 Earnings Call

May 07, 2025

Last week, Pfizer’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Albert Bourla and Chief Financial Officer, David Denton discussed the company’s  first-quarter 2025 financial results and performance highlights. Following their remarks, members of the executive leadership team answered questions from analysts, addressing, among other topics, Pfizer’s pipeline, obesity strategy, and dividend commitment.

Here are several of these questions, the responses from the Pfizer team, and the big picture context on each topic:

Courtney Breen of Bernstein asked for additional details on Pfizer’s pipeline strategy.

Chris Boshoff, Pfizer’s Chief Scientific Officer and President, Research & Development, provided an overview of the company’s anticipated pipeline catalysts for 2025, specifically highlighting:

An anticipated upcoming Phase 3 readout for Padcev, a medicine we are investigating for the potential treatment of muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a disease which in the U.S. impacts more than twice as many people as locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer (the type of cancer for which Padcev is currently approved)
An anticipated upcoming Phase 3 readout for Elrexfio, a treatment for certain patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, which we are evaluating in an earlier line of treatment that, if successful, could more than double the total addressable global population versus the currently approved indication
Encouraging Phase 3 data recently presented for Sasanlimab, a potential medicine that is being evaluated to help treat patients with a specific type of high-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer that impacts up to 38,000 people in the U.S.

He also noted that Pfizer has “a number of Phase 3 programs, we're accelerating or that already started or will start later this year” including in Oncology, Vaccines, and Internal Medicine.

Overall, we believe Pfizer is on track for a strong year of anticipated pipeline catalysts across its prioritized therapeutic areas. In 2025, the company expects at least four regulatory milestones, up to nine Phase 3 readouts, and a significant series of potential pivotal program starts.

For an overview of Pfizer’s R&D pipeline, see our latest  pipeline snapshot.

Evan Seigerman of BMO Capital Markets asked about Pfizer’s obesity strategy.

Chris Boshoff, Pfizer’s Chief Scientific Officer and President, Research & Development, highlighted Pfizer’s approach to its obesity portfolio, noting “we will continue to apply our global capabilities to advance our pipeline of differentiated oral medicines, including our oral GIPR antagonist currently in Phase 2, and advancing our preclinical portfolio to the clinic. We believe the future will be more fragmented based on differentiated or unique combinations with an emphasis on tolerability, accessibility and convenience. The future will also become more personalized, based on combinations addressing specific diseases associated with obesity and with metabolic dysfunction, including neurology, cardiovascular and respiratory.”

Andrew Baum, Pfizer’s Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer, provided further color on what Pfizer is looking for in terms of both clinical differentiation and commercial differentiation as it builds this portfolio of assets.

One of Pfizer’s focus areas within Internal Medicine is cardiometabolic disease, including obesity. The company is working to help address the critical gaps in patient care that exist around weight management and related conditions. To advance its pipeline of investigational treatments, Pfizer is progressing with internal programs, such as its oral GIPR antagonist candidate, while also pursuing external opportunities, which could include partnerships or acquisitions.

Vamil Divan of Guggenheim Securities LLC and Umer Raffat of Evercore ISI asked about Pfizer’s commitment to maintaining and growing the dividend over time.

David Denton, Pfizer’s Chief Financial Officer, responded by reinforcing that “the dividend remains a critical component and a key component of our capital allocation strategy. As you can tell, we've been very focused on improving the operating margin and performance of our business, thus improving our cash flow yield over time. This is all in support of all of our capital allocation priorities with dividend being a key component of that.”

Pfizer’s capital allocation strategy is designed to enhance long-term shareholder value, with one of its three pillars specifically focused on maintaining and growing the dividend over time. In the first quarter of 2025, the company returned $2.4 billion to shareholders through cash dividends.

A transcript and webcast replay of Pfizer’s first-quarter 2025 earnings conference call is available on the company’s  Investor Relations website.

Forward-looking statements included herein, including those related to our anticipated operating and financial performance, our research and development strategy and productivity, our product and pipeline advancements and candidates, and our capital allocation strategy and dividend, are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. We encourage you to read our reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the sections captioned “Risk Factors” and “Forward Looking Information and Factors that May Affect Future Results,” for a description of such substantial risks and uncertainties. These reports are available at pfizer.com and the SEC’s website. Also reference Pfizer’s first quarter 2025 earnings release for additional information.

Forward-looking statements included herein are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. We encourage you to read our reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the sections captioned “Risk Factors” and “Forward Looking Information and Factors that May Affect Future Results,” for a description of such substantial risks and uncertainties. These reports are available at pfizer.com and the SEC’s website.

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