CSL Swings to $2.58 Billion Annual Loss on Write-Downs

By David Winning

SYDNEY--Vaccine and blood-products company CSL swung to a deep annual loss on write-downs of assets, and it forecast flat revenue in fiscal 2027 as it grapples with falling take-up of flu shots in the U.S. and generic competition in iron products.

CSL reported a statutory net loss of $2.58 billion in the 12 months through June, compared to a $3.0 billion profit a year earlier. The result reflected some $7.1 billion of impairments before tax tied to shifts in the commercial outlook, timing of new generic products, and changes to regulation, among other factors.

CSL's underlying profit fell by 4% to $3.10 billion. The net profit measure, known as Npata, excludes restructuring costs and impairment charges. It fell by 2% when currency swings are stripped out.

Directors of the company declared a final dividend of $1.62/share, in line with the payout of a year earlier. CSL also said it would buy back another tranche of shares worth up to 1.1 billion Australian dollars, equivalent to US$780 million.

CSL is striving to restore investor confidence after a series of missteps, which cost former chief executive Paul McKenzie his job. CSL put a plan to spin off Seqirus, its flu-vaccine unit, on ice after deciding that pressing ahead wouldn't maximize shareholder value.

The company has also faced external headwinds, including the Middle East conflict and vaccine skepticism in the U.S. that has grown more widespread in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. CSL has rebased expectations for Seqirus until it has evidence that the vaccine market is improving.

"FY26 has been a year of reset," Gordon Naylor, CSL's interim chief executive, said on Tuesday. "We have taken decisive action and created a clear path to return to sustainable growth."

CSL's main business involves collecting blood plasma and using it to make important medications. That unit, known as Behring, recorded a 1% drop in revenue to US$11.4 billion in the 2026 fiscal year after absorbing a hit from normalizing channel inventory, which CSL foreshadowed in its May update.

CSL said it expects mid-single digit revenue growth in its Behring unit in the 2027 fiscal year, with immunoglobulin growth at mid-to-high single digit percent. CSL said that would be in line with the market.

CSL said revenue at Vifor, which it acquired for $11.7 billion in 2022, rose by 3% in fiscal 2026 while Seqirus achieved an 8% revenue decrease, partly reflecting the fall in U.S. vaccination rates.

Looking ahead, CSL forecast around 5% growth in underlying net profit. It also projected low single digit revenue growth in the Seqirus business, and a 25% revenue fall by Vifor due to generic competition in iron products and the revocation of marketing authorization for Tavenos.

Write to David Winning at david.winning@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 17, 2026 18:34 ET (22:34 GMT)