Profit up 36% for Jordan drug manufacturer Hikma

Hikma Pharmaceuticals reported a 36 per cent year-onyear rise in first-half core profit as Jordan’s largest drug maker increased its sales forecast for generic and injectable drugs.

The core profit – showing the group’s underlying performance excluding exceptional items and other adjustments – attributable to the shareholders for the six-month period ending June 30 rose to $148 million, the company said on its website. Revenues climbed 11 per cent to $989m, it said.

Siggi Olafsson, the Hikma chief executive, said all three of the company’s business segments – generic, injectable and branded drugs – achieved “revenue and, importantly, profit growth”.

“In our generics business, we are successfully driving demand for our more differentiated in-market products and are making progress reducing our cost base,” he said.

Hikma’s injectable business recorded a 14 per cent growth to $414m, while generics and branded segments grew by 11 per cent to $338m and 4 per cent to $232m respectively, the London-listed company said.

The drug maker increased its revenue forecast for its injectable business to as much as $825m from the previous guidance of $750m to $800m.

For the generic segment of the business, Hikma raised the forecast to $600m to $650m from the previous $550m to $600m guidance, a bright spot for the company, which had to revise down its generic sales several times last year amid difficulties in the US market.

“Our performance in the first half exceeded our expectations and we are pleased to be able to raise our guidance for both our injectables and generics businesses for the full year,” Mr Olafsson said.

“Our markets are competitive and we don’t expect the same demand for some of our injectable products to continue into 2019.”

Hikma’s shares rose to the highest level in more than a year after the earnings announcement in London.The shares gained as much as 10 per cent in London to 1,818 pence, their highest intraday price since May 2017.