AbbVie vs IBM: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
AbbVie reported $61.2B of revenue in FY2025 and $4.2B of net income. IBM reported $67.5B of revenue in FY2025 and $10.6B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
AbbVie
AbbVie reported $61.160 billion of FY2025 net revenue and $4.226 billion of net income. Skyrizi and Rinvoq generated $25.866 billion combined, while Humira declined to $4.540 billion after U.S. biosimilar entry. The 2020 Allergan acquisition added neuroscience and aesthetics revenue, and the 2024 ImmunoGen and Cerevel acquisitions added oncology and neuroscience assets.
IBM
IBM's reported revenue fell from about $80 billion in 2016-2018 to $57.4 billion in 2021, mostly because the Kyndryl spin-off and earlier divestitures removed low-margin services. Since then the slimmer company has grown each year: $60.5 billion in 2022, $61.9 billion in 2023, $62.8 billion in 2024, and $67.5 billion in 2025 (up 7.6%). FY2025 net income from continuing operations was $10.6 billion and free cash flow was $14.7 billion. In Q2 2026, revenue rose 1% to $17.16 billion: software grew 5% to $7.76 billion, consulting was flat at $5.33 billion, and infrastructure fell 7% to $3.84 billion as IBM Z sales lapped the z17 launch. Some large software deals slipped out of the quarter, so IBM cut its 2026 constant-currency revenue growth forecast to 4-5% while keeping its target of about $1 billion more free cash flow than in 2025.
Revenue and profit by year
AbbVie
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $61.2B | $4.2B | 6.9% | +8.6% | Source |
| FY2024 | $56.3B | $4.3B | 7.6% | +3.7% | Source |
| FY2023 | $54.3B | $4.9B | 9.0% | -6.4% | Source |
| FY2022 | $58.1B | $11.8B | 20.4% | +3.3% | Source |
| FY2021 | $56.2B | $11.5B | 20.5% | +22.7% | Source |
| FY2020 | $45.8B | $4.6B | 10.1% | +37.7% | Source |
| FY2019 | $33.3B | $7.9B | 23.7% | +1.6% | Source |
| FY2018 | $32.8B | $5.7B | 17.4% | +16.1% | Source |
| FY2017 | $28.2B | $5.3B | 18.8% | +10.1% | Source |
| FY2016 | $25.6B | $6B | 23.2% | — | Source |
IBM
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $67.5B | $10.6B | 15.7% | +7.6% | Source |
| FY2024 | $62.8B | $6B | 9.6% | +1.4% | Source |
| FY2023 | $61.9B | $7.5B | 12.1% | +2.2% | Source |
| FY2022 | $60.5B | $1.6B | 2.7% | +5.5% | Source |
| FY2021 | $57.4B | $5.7B | 10.0% | +3.9% | Source |
| FY2020 | $55.2B | $5.6B | 10.1% | -4.4% | Source |
| FY2019 | $57.7B | $9.4B | 16.3% | -27.5% | Source |
| FY2018 | $79.6B | $8.7B | 11.0% | +0.6% | Source |
| FY2017 | $79.1B | $5.8B | 7.3% | -1.0% | Source |
| FY2016 | $79.9B | $11.9B | 14.9% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
AbbVie
- Immunology Portfolio49.7%
FY2025 revenue was $30.406 billion, led by Skyrizi, Rinvoq, and Humira.
- Neuroscience Portfolio17.6%
FY2025 revenue was $10.767 billion, including Vraylar, Botox Therapeutic, Ubrelvy, and Qulipta.
- Oncology Portfolio10.9%
FY2025 revenue was $6.655 billion, including Imbruvica, Venclexta, and Elahere.
- Aesthetics Portfolio7.9%
FY2025 revenue was $4.860 billion, including Botox Cosmetic and Juvederm.
- Other Products and Revenue13.9%
The remaining FY2025 revenue came from eye care, other specialty products, and other revenue.
IBM
- Software~44%
Red Hat, automation, data and AI, transaction processing, security, and related software services.
- Consulting~31%
Technology consulting, business transformation, hybrid cloud implementation, and AI-enabled workflows.
- Infrastructure~23%
IBM Z, distributed infrastructure, storage, infrastructure software, maintenance, and related services.
- Financing~1%
Client financing and used equipment sales supporting enterprise technology deployments.
Business model and strategy
AbbVie
How it makes money
AbbVie earns revenue from global sales of prescription medicines and Allergan Aesthetics products. Its FY2025 portfolios were led by immunology at $30.406 billion, neuroscience at $10.767 billion, oncology at $6.655 billion, and aesthetics at $4.860 billion. The company funds internal research and supplements its pipeline through licensing and acquisitions.
Growth strategy
AbbVie is expanding approved uses and commercial reach for Skyrizi and Rinvoq while investing in oncology and neuroscience. ImmunoGen added Elahere and antibody-drug conjugate programs, Cerevel added clinical-stage neuroscience programs, and Allergan added Botox, Vraylar, migraine products, eye care, and aesthetics.
Competitive advantage
AbbVie's scale rests on its immunology portfolio, specialist commercial infrastructure, approved products across several therapeutic areas, and acquired oncology, neuroscience, and aesthetics assets. Those strengths are offset by patent-expiration, clinical-development, safety, reimbursement, and pricing risks described in its Form 10-K.
IBM
How it makes money
IBM makes money from four segments. Software ($29.96 billion in FY2025, about 44% of revenue) includes Red Hat Enterprise Linux and OpenShift, HashiCorp Terraform and Vault, Confluent data streaming (from March 2026), watsonx AI, automation, security, and mainframe transaction-processing software, sold mostly as subscriptions and recurring licenses.
Growth strategy
IBM does not try to beat AWS, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud at selling public cloud capacity. It sells the software layer that runs across all of them and across on-premises data centers.
Competitive advantage
IBM's main advantage is how deeply it is built into the core systems of large regulated organizations. Banks, card networks, insurers, and governments run high-volume transaction processing on IBM Z, and moving those workloads is slow, risky, and expensive.
Questions about AbbVie vs IBM
Which company has higher revenue — AbbVie Inc. or International Business Machines Corporation?
AbbVie Inc. reported $61.2B (FY2025), while International Business Machines Corporation reported $67.5B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, International Business Machines Corporation is the larger business, with AbbVie Inc. reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of AbbVie Inc. vs International Business Machines Corporation?
AbbVie Inc.'s market capitalisation stands at $465.8B, while International Business Machines Corporation's is $216.3B. AbbVie Inc. carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to International Business Machines Corporation.
Which is more financially efficient — AbbVie Inc. or International Business Machines Corporation?
AbbVie Inc. generates $1.07M / employee in revenue per employee, while International Business Machines Corporation generates $256k / employee. AbbVie Inc. shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do AbbVie Inc. and International Business Machines Corporation make money?
AbbVie Inc. and International Business Machines Corporation generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. AbbVie Inc.: AbbVie earns revenue from global sales of prescription medicines and Allergan Aesthetics products. International Business Machines Corporation: IBM makes money from four segments.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — AbbVie Inc. or International Business Machines Corporation?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, AbbVie Inc. trades at 7.6x P/S and International Business Machines Corporation at 3.2x P/S. AbbVie Inc. commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to International Business Machines Corporation. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is AbbVie Inc. bigger than International Business Machines Corporation?
By last reported revenue, International Business Machines Corporation ($67.5B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to AbbVie Inc. ($61.2B (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the AbbVie vs IBM overview