0918 GMT - Shares in European pharmaceutical companies trade lower Tuesday after Swiss drugmaker Novartis booked a decline in sales and core operating profit for the year's first quarter. Competition from generic drugs weighed on results, Novartis said, though it backed its guidance for the year. "We see...better opportunities elsewhere in the sector," UBS analyst Matthew Weston says. Shares in Novartis drop 2.6% to 111.10 Swiss francs; peers including London-listed GSK and AstraZeneca, Germany's Merck KGaA and Switzerland's Sandoz all trade lower too. (joshua.kirby@wsj.com; @joshualeokirby)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 28, 2026 05:18 ET (09:18 GMT)
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