Actually, earnings fell less than analysts anticipated, thanks to vaccines and the Ambien sleeping pill. Profit dropped 2.6 percent to $2.9 billion.

Ambien sales surged 54 percent in the US and vaccine revenue rose 16 percent as more adults bought booster shots. But the next quarter may be more difficult now that Ambien has lost patent protection and Sanofi’s third-largest medicine, the blood-thinner Plavix, faces price pressures and a court battle, the company said.

“These are challenging times for Sanofi,” said Michael Leacock, an analyst at ABN Amro in London. Speculation remains that Sanofi will bid for Bristol-Myers Squibb, although Sanofi execs weren’t discussing that today.

But the drugmaker faces big uncertainties surrounding key medicines. Beyond Ambien, generic versions of the anti-clotting drug Lovenox could also soon be approved, while a federal court may rule on patents protecting blood thinner Plavix by the summer.

The drugmakers hopes to offset these threats with new products such as Acomplia, a novel treatment for obesity which inhibits the same brain signals that make cannabis smokers hungry. Acomplia is already on sale in Europe but its US approval has been delayed several times, raising doubts about its commercial potential. An FDA panel reviews Acomplia next month.

Further reading…
Bloomberg News;
Sanofi earnings release.[tags]Acomplia, Sanofi-Aventis[/tags]