Goddy Egene
Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc continued its impressive growth trajectory in the third quarter as it recorded a growth of 665 per cent for the nine months ended June 30, 2020.
Its turnover rose to N2.01 billion in third quarter 2020 as against N1.41 billion recorded in comparable period of 2019, while gross crossed the landmark of a billion naira to N1.10 billion, up from N646.05 million posted in the corresponding period of 2019.
Profit after tax soared by 665 per cent to N237.63 million by June 2020 as against N31.07 million recorded in corresponding period of 2019.
The report indicated earnings per share of 13 kobo in 2020, showing a jump from 2.0 kobo in comparable period of 2019. Market operators said the substantial increase in distributable earnings places Neimeth in good stead for dividend payment, after shareholders at their annual general meeting in March 2020 approved a balance sheet restructuring that is expected to wipe out accumulated losses and prime the company for dividend payment from net profit.
Commenting on the results, Managing Director/CEO, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc, Matthew Azoji, said the growth indicates the company’s growth strategies are resilient and have continued to gain traction.
According to him, the nine results lent credence to improving positive impact from the company’s medium-term strategic growth plan as it strives to open additional markets while consolidating its major domestic market.
“These nine-month results are clear indications of the directions we want to go. We are growing our domestic market while opening up the export market, giving us the top-line diversification that we need to sustain growth despite the vagaries. Improving margins across our major business lines of pharmaceuticals and animal health are pointers to the general operating efficiency as we seek the best blend of strategies to grow our business as well as shareholders’ value,” Azoji said.
He outlined that the company would implement major expansionary initiatives including upgrade of existing factory and development of new manufacturing facilities in line with the overall strategy to become the manufacturing hub for pharmaceuticals and healthcare products in Sub-Saharan Africa.
“In the last quarter of the year, while we acknowledge the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will continue to drive our market share and cost control to ensure we close strong. We remain focused on delivering greater value to our shareholders, who have been supportive of the transformation plan of the company,” Azoji said.
