Novartis Lifts 2026 Core Operating Income Outlook Amid 'Solid' Third-quarter Sales; Shares Gain

05:14 AM EDT, 10/27/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Shares in Novartis (NOVN.SW) rose on Tuesday after the company increased its 2026 core operating income guidance, supported by higher third-quarter net sales. The Swiss pharmaceutical major's net sales to third parties for the three months ended Sept. 30 increased to $14.52 billion from $13.91 billion a year earlier. Novartis now expects its full-year core operating income to be "in line to grow" by low single digits versus the previous guidance of declining by low single digits. Net sales projections remained unchanged, with low single-digit growth. "Novartis delivered solid sales growth in Q3, as priority brands and launches more than offset generic erosion, demonstrating the replacement power of the business. Combined with productivity efforts, this drove strong bottom-line performance and allowed us to upgrade our full-year guidance," Chief Executive Vas Narasimhan said. Priority brands led the annual sales growth during the reporting period, with Scemblix and Leqvio up 67% and 63%, respectively. Kisqali's sales grew 37%, while Kesimpta rose 22% and Cosentyx was up 9%. Attributable net income, however, dropped to $1.20 billion from $3.93 billion a year ago, largely driven by higher research and development costs. The company's shares were up 2% during early trading in Zurich.