GSK PLC's (LSE:GSK, NYSE:GSK) third-quarter results offered the kind of clean beat investors like to see.
Sales came in 4% ahead of UBS forecasts, with operating profit up 12% and strength visible across all three divisions: Specialty Medicines, Vaccines and General Medicines.
The performance was broad-based rather than reliant on any one blockbuster, helping the group lift its full-year guidance for both sales and profits.
Specialty Medicines saw strong growth from HIV therapies Dovato and Cabenuva, while cancer drug Jemperli delivered a 14% beat on volume gains.
Respiratory treatment Trelegy also impressed, up 10%, helped by favourable pricing adjustments. Vaccines was another bright spot, with Shingrix and Arexvy both ahead of expectations.
Arexvy, GSK’s respiratory syncytial virus jab, benefited from new reimbursement in Germany and tender wins in Canada and Spain. Shingrix, the shingles vaccine, grew strongly in Europe, offsetting a slowdown in the US.
Costs were in line with expectations, but higher royalty income and the stronger top line combined to push operating profit 11% above UBS estimates and net income 16% ahead. The quarterly dividend was steady at 16p.
Management responded to the strong quarter with a significant upgrade to guidance for 2025. The company now expects sales to grow between 6 and 7% at constant exchange rates, up from a previous range of 3 to 5%.
Core operating income is now seen rising by 9 to 11%, compared with earlier guidance of 6 to 8%. UBS believes the main driver is sales leverage, with more revenue falling through to profit.
The update was not without its blemish: The launch of GSK’s new long-acting HIV treatment has been pushed back a year to 2028. But pipeline news elsewhere was encouraging, including positive Phase 3 data for Bexsero in infant meningitis and progress on Arexvy trials in China.
UBS described the quarter as a “high quality beat” across the portfolio and said the upgraded guidance, combined with greater clarity on future leadership, should provide support for the shares.
With management likely to reinvest some of the upside into research and development next year, the focus now turns to how GSK builds on this momentum heading into 2026.