Pfizer Q2 2025: Profit Surges on Cost Controls, Not Operational Growth

Pfizer, the global biopharmaceutical giant, recently released its financial results for the second quarter of 2025. By diving into its latest 10-Q filing with the SEC, we can get a clearer picture of the company's performance, its strategic shifts, and the path it's charting in a post-pandemic world. The headline story is a dramatic surge in profitability, but the details reveal a complex mix of successful growth drivers, declining legacy products, and disciplined cost control.

Let's break down the flow from revenue to profit. The following chart visualizes Pfizer's income statement for the six months ended June 29, 2025.

A Tale of Two Portfolios

For the second quarter of 2025, Pfizer reported total revenues of $14.7 billion, a solid 10% increase from the $13.3 billion reported in the same quarter last year. However, the picture for the first six months of the year is flat, with revenues of $28.4 billion. This highlights a recent acceleration.

The growth story is a blend of old and new, with the COVID-19 franchise presenting a particularly mixed picture:

• COVID-19 Products (Comirnaty & Paxlovid): While Comirnaty vaccine revenues jumped 96% to $381 million in the quarter, and Paxlovid treatment revenues grew 70% to $427 million, the year-to-date trend for Paxlovid is starkly different. For the first six months, Paxlovid sales plummeted nearly 60% to $918 million from $2.3 billion a year prior. The quarterly bump was largely due to favorable rebate adjustments and higher pricing in the U.S. as it transitions away from government contracts, masking a broader trend of declining demand.
• Core Growth Drivers: Picking up the slack are key products in Pfizer’s non-COVID portfolio. The Vyndaqel family (for a rare heart condition) continues its impressive run, with revenues surging 22% to $1.6 billion in the quarter. The anticoagulant Eliquis, a partnership with Bristol-Myers Squibb, remains a steady blockbuster, contributing $2.0 billion.
• Oncology Strength: The oncology division, which includes cancer treatments, is also a critical growth engine. Padcev revenues grew 38% to $542 million, and Xtandi saw a 14% increase to $566 million. This strength helps offset the 7% decline in Ibrance, which faces increasing competition.

The Bottom Line's Dramatic Rebound

The most striking figure in the report is Pfizer’s net income. For the second quarter, net income attributable to shareholders was $2.9 billion, or $0.51 per share. This is a massive turnaround from the mere $41 million, or $0.01 per share, reported in the same period last year.

What fueled this incredible leap? The answer lies less in operational growth and more in the company's aggressive cost management and the absence of massive one-off expenses from the prior year.

In Q2 2024, Pfizer booked $1.25 billion in restructuring and acquisition-related costs. In Q2 2025, that same line item was a credit of $18 million. This single factor is the primary driver behind the dramatic year-over-year profit recovery.

Furthermore, Pfizer's enterprise-wide "cost realignment program" is clearly bearing fruit.

• Selling, Informational, and Administrative (SI&A) expenses fell 8% to $3.4 billion.
• Research and Development (R&D) spending was also down 8% to $2.5 billion.

This disciplined approach to spending is a core part of Pfizer's strategy to expand margins as it navigates the revenue transition away from its pandemic-era highs.

Strategic Moves and Future Outlook

Pfizer isn't just cutting costs; it's also making strategic financial moves. In the first quarter, the company sold its remaining stake in Haleon, the consumer health company it spun off with GSK, for $6.3 billion. These proceeds provide significant capital to reduce debt, pursue new business development, and invest in its pipeline.

Looking ahead, Pfizer’s challenge is to continue executing this pivot. The company must successfully launch new products and expand indications for existing ones to build a sustainable growth engine beyond its COVID-19 products. The dramatic improvement in profitability, driven by cost controls and favorable year-over-year comparisons, provides a stronger foundation for this transition. The focus now will be on how effectively management can reinvest in true innovation to drive the top line forward.