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Beyond Imbruvica: Can AbbVie Rebuild Its Oncology Portfolio?
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Key Takeaways
Venclexta growth and newer therapies like Elahere and Epkinly are cushioning Imbruvica's decline.
AbbVie added Decnupaz and is advancing ADC candidates across blood cancers and solid tumors.
ABBV is broadening oncology through bispecifics, T-cell engagers and a PD-1/VEGF-targeted therapy.
AbbVie (ABBV - Free Report) entered the second half of 2026 with its broader business continuing to grow, but oncology remained one of the weaker parts of the portfolio. While the company’s total revenues increased 9.9% year over year on an operational basis to roughly $32 billion during the first half of 2026, oncology sales that account for more than 10% of the figure moved in the opposite direction.
The company generated oncology revenues of $3.28 billion, down 2.8% year over year. Much of the weakness can be traced to Imbruvica, which declined 27.1% to $1.09 billion. The decline reflects the continued competitive pressure and IRA-driven pricing changes that took effect at the start of this year.
The more important part of the story, however, lies elsewhere. AbbVie has steadily added scale to a group of newer oncology therapies while also expanding its development pipeline across different cancer targets and treatment approaches. The progress so far raises the question of whether these products can eventually form a broader oncology portfolio capable of reducing the franchise's dependence on Imbruvica.
Venclexta & Newer Assets Help ABBV Cushion the Imbruvica Decline
Venclexta remains an important growth driver for AbbVie’s oncology business. The drug generated $1.54 billion in sales during the first half of 2026, up 9.6% year over year on an operational basis. Growth has been supported by continued demand in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), with Venclexta increasingly being used alongside BTK inhibitors as a fixed-duration treatment.
Beyond Venclexta, AbbVie’s newer oncology products are also gaining momentum. Management noted that double-digit sales growth from ovarian cancer therapy Elahere, lymphoma drug Epkinly and lung cancer therapy Emrelis helped partially offset the decline in Imbruvica. While Elahere sales rose 19.3% year over year to $409 million, Epkinly sales increased 52.2% to $186 million.
The portfolio received another addition in May with the FDA approval of Decnupaz for blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN). Decnupaz marks AbbVie’s third marketed antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) and its first ADC approved for a blood cancer, further expanding the company’s oncology portfolio.
AbbVie Advances a Diversified Oncology Pipeline
The company is increasingly broadening its oncology pipeline across multiple therapeutic approaches, with ADC emerging as a key area of focus. This drug class is widely viewed as one of the most promising innovations in cancer treatment due to its ability to selectively deliver cancer-killing agents to tumor cells.
AbbVie is advancing several ADC candidates targeting different cancer indications across different stages of clinical development. One such candidate, Temab-A, is in late-stage development for colorectal cancer and is also being studied in several mid-stage studies for other indications. The company is also evaluating Decnupaz for a second indication, acute myeloid leukemia, in a phase II study. Beyond these programs, AbbVie has other early-stage assets in development, reflecting its ambition to build a broader ADC platform across both hematologic malignancies and solid tumors.
However, AbbVie is not putting all its eggs in one basket. The company is also expanding its portfolio of T-cell engagers and bispecific antibodies. Etentamig is being evaluated as a BCMA×CD3 bispecific T-cell engager for multiple myeloma in a late-stage study. The company also added ABBV-2001, a CD38×BCMA×CD3 trispecific T-cell engager, to its pipeline through an exclusive licensing agreement with Ichnos Glenmark Innovation across North America, Europe, Japan and Greater China.
AbbVie has also added another approach in solid tumors through its partnership with RemeGen, under which it holds an exclusive license outside Greater China for ABBV-1480, a PD-1/VEGF-targeted bispecific antibody. The addition gives the company exposure to another mechanism as it continues to diversify its oncology pipeline beyond its existing portfolio of cancer therapies.
For AstraZeneca, oncology sales now account for 46% of total revenues. Sales in its oncology segment rose 15% year over year in the first half of 2026, driven by the strong performance of medicines such as Tagrisso, Imfinzi, Calquence and Enhertu (in partnership with Daiichi Sankyo).
Merck’s key oncology medicine is its PD-L1 inhibitor Keytruda. The drug, approved for several types of cancer, alone accounted for 48% of MRK’s total revenues in first-half 2026.
Pfizer’s oncology revenues grew 2% in the first half of 2026, driven by drugs like Padcev, Lorbrena and the Braftovi-Mektovi combination. The segment now accounts for nearly 28% of its total revenues.
ABBV’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of AbbVie have gained 16% so far this year compared with the industry’s 12% growth, as seen in the chart below.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, AbbVie is trading at a discount to the industry. Based on the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 17.01 times forward earnings, below the industry average of 18.08.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
ABBV’s EPS estimates for 2026 and 2027 have declined during the past 60 days.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Beyond Imbruvica: Can AbbVie Rebuild Its Oncology Portfolio?
Key Takeaways
AbbVie (ABBV - Free Report) entered the second half of 2026 with its broader business continuing to grow, but oncology remained one of the weaker parts of the portfolio. While the company’s total revenues increased 9.9% year over year on an operational basis to roughly $32 billion during the first half of 2026, oncology sales that account for more than 10% of the figure moved in the opposite direction.
The company generated oncology revenues of $3.28 billion, down 2.8% year over year. Much of the weakness can be traced to Imbruvica, which declined 27.1% to $1.09 billion. The decline reflects the continued competitive pressure and IRA-driven pricing changes that took effect at the start of this year.
The more important part of the story, however, lies elsewhere. AbbVie has steadily added scale to a group of newer oncology therapies while also expanding its development pipeline across different cancer targets and treatment approaches. The progress so far raises the question of whether these products can eventually form a broader oncology portfolio capable of reducing the franchise's dependence on Imbruvica.
Venclexta & Newer Assets Help ABBV Cushion the Imbruvica Decline
Venclexta remains an important growth driver for AbbVie’s oncology business. The drug generated $1.54 billion in sales during the first half of 2026, up 9.6% year over year on an operational basis. Growth has been supported by continued demand in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), with Venclexta increasingly being used alongside BTK inhibitors as a fixed-duration treatment.
Beyond Venclexta, AbbVie’s newer oncology products are also gaining momentum. Management noted that double-digit sales growth from ovarian cancer therapy Elahere, lymphoma drug Epkinly and lung cancer therapy Emrelis helped partially offset the decline in Imbruvica. While Elahere sales rose 19.3% year over year to $409 million, Epkinly sales increased 52.2% to $186 million.
The portfolio received another addition in May with the FDA approval of Decnupaz for blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN). Decnupaz marks AbbVie’s third marketed antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) and its first ADC approved for a blood cancer, further expanding the company’s oncology portfolio.
AbbVie Advances a Diversified Oncology Pipeline
The company is increasingly broadening its oncology pipeline across multiple therapeutic approaches, with ADC emerging as a key area of focus. This drug class is widely viewed as one of the most promising innovations in cancer treatment due to its ability to selectively deliver cancer-killing agents to tumor cells.
AbbVie is advancing several ADC candidates targeting different cancer indications across different stages of clinical development. One such candidate, Temab-A, is in late-stage development for colorectal cancer and is also being studied in several mid-stage studies for other indications. The company is also evaluating Decnupaz for a second indication, acute myeloid leukemia, in a phase II study. Beyond these programs, AbbVie has other early-stage assets in development, reflecting its ambition to build a broader ADC platform across both hematologic malignancies and solid tumors.
However, AbbVie is not putting all its eggs in one basket. The company is also expanding its portfolio of T-cell engagers and bispecific antibodies. Etentamig is being evaluated as a BCMA×CD3 bispecific T-cell engager for multiple myeloma in a late-stage study. The company also added ABBV-2001, a CD38×BCMA×CD3 trispecific T-cell engager, to its pipeline through an exclusive licensing agreement with Ichnos Glenmark Innovation across North America, Europe, Japan and Greater China.
AbbVie has also added another approach in solid tumors through its partnership with RemeGen, under which it holds an exclusive license outside Greater China for ABBV-1480, a PD-1/VEGF-targeted bispecific antibody. The addition gives the company exposure to another mechanism as it continues to diversify its oncology pipeline beyond its existing portfolio of cancer therapies.
ABBV’s Competition in the Oncology Space
Other bigger players in the oncology space include AstraZeneca (AZN - Free Report) , Merck (MRK - Free Report) and Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) .
For AstraZeneca, oncology sales now account for 46% of total revenues. Sales in its oncology segment rose 15% year over year in the first half of 2026, driven by the strong performance of medicines such as Tagrisso, Imfinzi, Calquence and Enhertu (in partnership with Daiichi Sankyo).
Merck’s key oncology medicine is its PD-L1 inhibitor Keytruda. The drug, approved for several types of cancer, alone accounted for 48% of MRK’s total revenues in first-half 2026.
Pfizer’s oncology revenues grew 2% in the first half of 2026, driven by drugs like Padcev, Lorbrena and the Braftovi-Mektovi combination. The segment now accounts for nearly 28% of its total revenues.
ABBV’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of AbbVie have gained 16% so far this year compared with the industry’s 12% growth, as seen in the chart below.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, AbbVie is trading at a discount to the industry. Based on the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 17.01 times forward earnings, below the industry average of 18.08.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
ABBV’s EPS estimates for 2026 and 2027 have declined during the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
AbbVie currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.