And yet, drug companies still have outrageous profit margin.
And yet, drug companies still have outrageous profit margin.
In reality (I think this is your point) there's a big time shift, in that profit earned in 2024 is thanks to R&D spend over the past decade or so. However, the 2024 profit margin would incorporate the 2024 R&D spend contributing towards new drugs and indications over the next decade or so, and with a with a constant R&D spend these would effectively cancel out.
(In reality, of course, R&D budgets do fluctuate.)
There is also "Operating Profit Margin," which would include current R&D costs, which (assuming they are non-declining over time) would account for development costs.
If the company took on debt to develop the drugs, then "Net Profit Margin" would also include the cost of servicing that debt.
See this talk about pharmaceutical finances: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LGqQJFdoWM