Newly elected Takeda CEO Julie Kim announced on June 24 that the company is entering a year of transition as it anticipates a decline in revenue for the coming fiscal year. Speaking at Takeda’s annual shareholder meeting, Kim said she is succeeding Christophe Weber, who led the company for 12 years, and emphasized that turning around the balance sheet will be a key priority.
Takeda projects its core revenue and profit to be in negative territory for its 2026 fiscal year, which runs from April 1 to March 31. The company reported earlier this month that core revenue will drop by a low-single-digit percentage at constant currencies. Operating profit is expected to decrease by 5% to 8%, while earnings-per-share are forecasted to decline by a mid-teens percentage. "We will need to invest for future growth," Kim said during her remarks.
Kim told investors that Takeda is focusing on three upcoming products with planned launches in the next twelve months: oveporexton for narcolepsy, rusfertide for polycythemia vera, and zasocitinib for psoriasis. Oveporexton is currently under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration with a decision expected in the third quarter; late-stage trial results last July showed significant improvements in excessive daytime sleepiness. Rusfertide also awaits regulatory review with phase 3 data showing higher response rates compared to placebo. Zasocitinib demonstrated superiority over an existing treatment in recent late-stage trials.
Kim said delivering successful launches of these products—if approved—is Takeda’s top priority under her leadership. She also highlighted the importance of maintaining strong performance from established brands such as Entyvio and Adcetris, which represent about sixty percent of Takeda’s revenue.
Beyond its product pipeline, Takeda's transformation includes ongoing business reorganization measures anchored by a new operating model introduced earlier this year. Since announcing these changes in March, thousands of positions have been targeted for reduction; approximately 4,500 employees worldwide are expected to be impacted by the end of fiscal year 2026 as part of cost-cutting efforts and partnership adjustments.
