Vertex Raises 2026 Forecast on $3.44 Billion Quarter as Crinetics Costs Cut Profit 40%

Key figures: Q3 revenue $3.44 billion (+12%) · Alyftrek $706 million (+186%) · GAAP net income $654 million (−40%) · 2026 revenue guidance $13.15–$13.25 billion · Povetacicept FDA decision date Nov. 30

Boston-based Vertex Pharmaceuticals raised its 2026 sales forecast on Monday after reporting third-quarter revenue of $3.44 billion, up 12% from a year earlier. But the costs of its Crinetics Pharmaceuticals acquisition cut GAAP net income by about 40%, to $654 million.

The Seaport-based company now expects full-year revenue of $13.15 billion to $13.25 billion, up from $13.1 billion to $13.2 billion. It reported the results after the market closed on Nov. 2 and held a call with analysts at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time.

A newer cystic fibrosis drug is taking over from Trikafta

Cystic fibrosis drugs still account for almost all of Vertex’s business. CF sales rose 7.7% to $3.27 billion, or 95% of total revenue, according to the company’s earnings release. Inside that total, patients are moving from one product to another.

Sales of Alyftrek, Vertex’s once-daily CF treatment, nearly tripled to $705.8 million from $247.0 million. Trikafta, the older drug sold as Kaftrio in Europe, fell 8.2% to $2.44 billion. Vertex said Alyftrek gained reimbursement in seven more countries during the quarter, bringing the total to 32.

In the U.S., revenue rose 10% to $2.17 billion. The company said the gain came from patient demand, new Alyftrek starts and higher realized net prices in CF. Revenue outside the U.S. rose 16% to $1.27 billion, helped in part by currency movements.

Growth outside cystic fibrosis is still small

Vertex is trying to build businesses beyond CF. In the third quarter:

• Casgevy, the CRISPR-edited gene therapy for sickle cell disease and beta thalassemia, brought in $99.2 million, up from $16.9 million a year earlier and up 30% from the second quarter. In July the FDA approved it for children as young as 2.
• Journavx, the non-opioid acute pain pill, had $58.3 million in sales, compared with $19.6 million a year earlier. Vertex said more than 750,000 prescriptions were filled in the quarter.
• Palsonify, the acromegaly drug it gained with Crinetics, added $10.1 million in September, its first month under Vertex.

Journavx sales fell short of analysts’ forecasts, BioPharma Dive reported, and Vertex shares were down about 3% by mid-morning Tuesday. For the full year, Vertex kept its forecast of $500 million or more in combined Casgevy and Journavx revenue. It expects $40 million to $50 million from Palsonify.

What the numbers show

The Boston Report’s calculations from the company’s tables show the following:

• Non-CF products made up 4.9% of revenue ($167.6 million), up from 1.2% ($36.5 million) a year earlier. That is a 4.6-fold increase, but from a small base.
• Alyftrek made up 22.5% of combined Alyftrek and Trikafta sales, so most patients still take the older drug.
• Operating income fell 40%, to $712.9 million. Selling, general and administrative costs rose 90%, to $844.1 million, and research and development costs rose 35%, to $1.32 billion. Both totals include about $500 million in Crinetics compensation and deal costs.
• Adjusted profit barely moved. Non-GAAP earnings were $4.76 a share, down from $4.80. That is less than 1% lower, which suggests most of the drop in GAAP profit came from deal costs.
• The new guidance implies fourth-quarter revenue of $3.39 billion to $3.49 billion. That is roughly flat to slightly up from the third quarter. Nine-month revenue was $9.76 billion, 10.8% higher than a year earlier.

The Crinetics deal changed the balance sheet

Vertex closed the purchase of Crinetics on Sept. 1. Cash and marketable securities fell to $9.8 billion at Sept. 30, from $12.3 billion at the end of 2025. The company cited $9.0 billion in net cash used for Crinetics and share buybacks, partly offset by a $4.5 billion term loan. Goodwill and other intangible assets rose to $10.9 billion from $1.5 billion, and Vertex now reports about $4.5 billion in debt, where it had none at the start of the year.

The company also raised its full-year forecast for combined GAAP research, acquired in-process R&D and SG&A costs to $7.15 billion to $7.2 billion, from $6.3 billion to $6.45 billion. It pointed mainly to the cost of running and integrating Crinetics.

A kidney drug decision is due this month

The next big event is Nov. 30, the FDA’s target date to decide on povetacicept for IgA nephropathy, a chronic kidney disease. “With the potential povetacicept approval in IgAN coming later this month, we are well positioned to establish nephrology as our fifth commercial franchise,” Chief Executive Reshma Kewalramani said in the release. According to BioPharma Dive, Chief Commercial Officer Duncan McKechnie told analysts, “we are 100% ready.”

Vertex’s results add to a busy third-quarter earnings season for Boston companies. Seaport Therapeutics, another Boston drug developer, also posted quarterly results this week. Vertex’s headquarters is on Fan Pier in the Seaport District. For more on local companies, see our Boston business news coverage and the latest Boston news.

Sources

• Vertex Pharmaceuticals, “Vertex Reports Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results,” SEC Form 8-K Exhibit 99.1, Nov. 2, 2026
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Form 10-Q for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026
• BioPharma Dive, Vertex third-quarter 2026 earnings coverage, Nov. 3, 2026