Oct 23 (Reuters) - Swiss contract drug manufacturer

Lonza confirmed its full-year guidance on Thursday

after a strong third quarter for its main contract development

and manufacturing organization (CDMO) business.

The Basel-based company continues to expect a core earnings

before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization margin of

30% to 31% for the CDMO business in 2025. The business had made

up about 86% of the company's half-year sales.

Lonza signed large contracts in the third quarter and also

expects "a healthy level of contract signings across

technologies and sites" in the CDMO business for the full year,

it said.

A "significant long-term commercial supply agreement"

confirmed for Vacaville in the U.S. was the most material

disclosure in the quarterly update, according to Jefferies

analysts who said some investors had been concerned with the

lack of news from Lonza compared with competitors.

Further signings for Vacaville, which Lonza acquired last year,

are expected in the coming months, the company said.

Its shares were seen 4% higher in pre-market indications.

Lonza also said it expected no material financial impact from

current U.S. trade policy announcements, pointing to its strong

manufacturing presence in the country.

In September, U.S. president Donald Trump said he would impose a

100% tariff on imports of branded or patented pharmaceutical

products unless a company is building a manufacturing plant in

the United States.

Pfizer ( PFE ) has since struck a deal with the U.S.

administration for tariff relief. Last week, Germany's

Merck ( MRK ) also said it had reached an agreement on in-vitro

fertilization drugs.

A major Swiss chemical and pharmaceutical industry association,

Scienceindustries, said earlier in October that Swiss drugmakers

could strike their own deals with the U.S. following Pfizer's ( PFE ). A

representative said he believed big members, including Lonza,

would have a very high probability of being exempt from the new

tariffs.