Cannabis-based medicine group GW Pharmaceuticals reported solid progress, as the company rolled out its Sativex product for treating multiple sclerosis in Europe and Canada.
Sativex sales rose 59 per cent year-on-year to £4.4m, driven by the product's launch in Germany and Spain in partnership with Almirall. Canadian and UK sales contributed £2.2m to the total, with Bayer marketing the product there. The shift in sales comes at a key moment for GW as milestone payments fall sharply - down to £5.3m from £11.2m last year - as Sativex passes its development and marketing targets.
Research & development spending stayed steady at £22.3m, with the proportion funded by GW falling slightly to £6.3m. The balance is funded by Japanese development partner Otsuka, which is ramping up a phase III clinical trial programme aimed at getting approval for Sativex to treat cancer pain in the US. GW has also eliminated the deficit in its profit and loss reserve by using a £65m inter-company loan, which would leave it free to pay dividends in the future.
Prior to these figures, Peel Hunt was forecasting a £5.7m pre-tax loss for 2012 (£0.2m in 2011), but says that higher Sativex sales should reduce that, despite additional investment in manufacturing capacity.
GW PHARMACEUTICALS (GWP) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 98p | MARKET VALUE: | £129m | |
| TOUCH: | 97-100p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 133p | LOW: 81p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | nil | PE RATIO: | 47 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 13p* | NET CASH: | £28m | |
| Year to 30 Sep | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 5.70 | -12.6 | -8.8 | nil |
| 2008 | 11.8 | -10.2 | -6.8 | nil |
| 2009 | 24.1 | 1.20 | 1.2 | nil |
| 2010 | 30.7 | 4.60 | 3.6 | nil |
| 2011 | 29.6 | 2.53 | 2.1 | nil |
| % change | -4 | -45 | -42 | - |
Ex-div:- Payment:- *Includes intangible assets of £5.2m, or 4p a share | ||||
