2024 Revenues ($USD) : $10.60B

Astellas Pharma, born from the 2005 merger of Yamanouchi and Fujisawa and focusing on areas like oncology, ophthalmology, and urology, showed some strong top-line trends heading into the end of its fiscal year 2024 (which wraps up March 31, 2025). Its third-quarter revenue (ending Dec 31, 2024) hit JP¥517.4 billion, a hefty 23% jump compared to the same quarter the previous year.

But the bottom line told a different story. The company posted a significant net loss of JP¥97.7 billion for that third quarter, a sharp reversal from the JP¥14.5 billion profit it booked a year earlier. Part of the pain came from taking a big non-consolidated hit (JP¥60.6 billion) related to writing down the value of its Ganymed Pharmaceuticals subsidiary shares, although this specific charge was eliminated in the consolidated group results. Still, the reported Q3 loss and softer-than-expected earnings per share knocked the stock price down nearly 7% right after the news broke.

Strategically, Astellas says it's sticking to its knitting – trying to turn innovative science into treatments for diseases where patients don't have great options.

Looking down the road, forecasts suggest Astellas' revenue might flatten out over the next three years, potentially lagging the expected 4.3% growth for the Japanese pharma industry overall. Analysts are noting that while recent revenue growth looks good on the surface, the big Q3 loss highlights potential risks, perhaps tied to its acquisition plays. Future results look dependent on how its pipeline progresses, getting new products successfully launched, expanding its reach geographically, and finding ways to operate more efficiently.