BTG's (BTG) £250m acquisition spree this year - for EKOS and TheraSphere - has cemented the group's place as the largest UK pharmaceutical company outside of the big three. But even after stripping out a three-month contribution from these deals, the company's underlying half-year operating profit grew 10 per cent to £46.7m.
BTG must now wait for a US Food and Drug Administration licence to sell its Varisolve varicose veins treatment, but with a registration date set for 4 December, it looks increasingly likely that Varisolve will launch in 2014's first half. Management's forecast for peak Varisolve sales were maintained at around $500m (£313m), with additional commercial investment expected next year to ramp sales up by 2016. However, chief executive Louise Makin believes the possibility for more immediate upgrades will come from the newly acquired EKOS deep vein thrombosis treatment division. Sales forecasts here were boosted from $100m to between $100m and $200m, with significant opportunities thought likely in the European market. Meanwhile, revenue from the company's other divisions was largely stable. For example, fewer snake bites kept sales of anti-venom drug Crofab broadly flat at £49.7m, although geographic expansion helped Digifab revenues to grow 33 per cent to £15.3m.
Broker Investec Securities expects full-year pre-tax profit of £58.1m, giving EPS of 11.4p (from £68.8m and 14.5p in 2013).
BTG (BTG) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 434p | MARKET VALUE: | £1.57bn | |
| TOUCH: | 434-436p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 435p | LOW: 313p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | nil | PE RATIO: | 70 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 149p* | NET CASH: | £39.8m | |
| Half-year to 30 Sep | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 143.0 | 27.7 | 5.60 | nil |
| 2013 | 153.0 | 32.7 | 6.80 | nil |
| % change | +7 | +18 | +21 | - |
Ex-div:- Payment:- *Includes intangible assets of £545m, or 151p a share | ||||
