AbbVie earnings: third quarter 2026

AbbVie's sales rose 10.3% from a year earlier to $17.4 billion in the third quarter of 2026, led by its two newer immunology drugs, Skyrizi and Rinvoq. It raised its forecast for adjusted earnings per share for the year to $13.95–$13.99. Profit more than doubled, but much of that jump came from a far smaller one-off charge for buying experimental drugs than a year ago ($216 million against $2.7 billion), not only from stronger trading. ¹

Against what analysts expected

On the company's adjusted measure, earnings per share of $3.82 came in about 2% above the analysts' average forecast of $3.74 (Nasdaq's earnings calendar); on the official accounting measure, which includes one-off charges such as the $216 million for acquired research, the figure was $2.37, below it, so the comparison depends on the measure, though the forecast is for the adjusted figure. ¹²

The strong points

• Immunology, more than half of AbbVie's sales, grew 16.3%, with its newer drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq each up more than a fifth. ¹
• Total sales rose 10.3% from a year earlier, and almost none of that came from currency moves. ¹
• AbbVie is raising its quarterly dividend by about 5.2%, from $1.73 to $1.82 a share, from February 2027. ¹

The weak points

• Humira, its older drug, saw sales fall 31.2% from a year earlier. ¹
• Cancer sales barely moved, up 0.8%, because the leukaemia drug Imbruvica fell 26.1%. ¹
• Aesthetics sales, which include Botox for cosmetic use, slipped 1.4% to $1.18 billion. ¹

What the company expects

• AbbVie raised its forecast for 2026 adjusted earnings per share to $13.95–$13.99, from $13.76–$13.96 before. ¹
• The new forecast counts only the $0.69 a share already spent this year on buying experimental drugs and milestone payments, and leaves out any such costs in the fourth quarter. ¹

Our verdict on the quarter

A very strong report. AbbVie raised its forecast for the year, came in slightly above what analysts expected on its adjusted measure, and grew sales by a tenth as its newer immunology drugs more than replaced Humira, so, in general, a very strong report.

The results as published

• The results release itself
• The filing it came with (SEC)

Notes

1. AbbVie's results release, 30 October 2026: sec.gov. ↩
2. Nasdaq's earnings calendar, 30 October 2026. ↩