Pharmaniaga posts smaller profit

KUALA LUMPUR: Pharmaniaga Bhd registered a lower net profit of RM5.39 million in the second quarter ended June 30, compared with RM9.52 million in the same quarter last year.

The drop was mainly due to higher corporate tax as a result of increased profit at subsidiaries.

Revenue, however, improved to RM583 million, a quarter-on-quarter growth of 12.5 per cent, compared with RM518 million in the same quarter last year.

The growth was bolstered by strong demand from government hospitals.

In a statement, Pharmaniaga said its resilient performance in the first half was a testament to solid business fundamentals and improving operational efficiency.

“One of the cornerstones of our resilience is the strong partnerships we have cultivated with our major clients.

“We will build on this to enhance our market presence in the private sector business, particularly in the consumer healthcare segment through aggressive strategic marketing initiatives,” said the group.

Improved contributions from concession business propelled logistics and distribution division to more than double its profit before tax to RM9 million, from RM4 million last year.

Pharmaniaga’s year-to-date revenue for the period ended June 30 surpassed the RM1.2 billion mark, an increase of 5.7 per cent from RM1.1 billion in the same period last year. Earnings per share in the period under review stood at 8.84 sen.

The board of directors declared a second interim dividend of four sen per share, which will be paid on September 18 to shareholders on the register as at September 5.

We will build on this to enhance our market presence in the private sector business, particularly in the consumer healthcare segment through aggressive strategic marketing initiatives.