Back in November 2014 medical devices group Consort Medical (CSRT) acquired drug manufacturer Aesica, and finally the benefits have started to show up in the numbers. Aesica contributed £160m of revenue in the year and cash profits of £17.9m. With sales from the original Bespak business also up 11 per cent and margin improvements across the business, group underlying operating profits were boosted 48 per cent at constant currencies.
The acquisition has also expanded Consort’s product and service offering, and in February the group entered into a manufacturing agreement to develop its first combination drug and device product with eye treatment specialist Precision Ocular. Consort also took a 12.2 per cent stake in Precision Ocular in the period - a possible hint at more acquisition plans.
With 14 projects in the pipeline, the development portfolio has reached record capacity, with two new products expected to receive the regulatory green light within 12 months. One of these is a joint project with generic drugs giant Mylan to sell a cheaper alternative of GlaxoSmithKline's (GSK) best-selling asthma drug Advair, which loses patent protection in August. Last year, Advair generated sales worth £3.7bn for the pharma giant.
Broker Investec expects EPS to fall to 55.9p (from pre-tax profits of £33.8m) for the year ending April 2017, due to finance charges from investment in the business (FY2016: 56.8p and £32.3m).
CONSORT MEDICAL (CSRT) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 948p | MARKET VALUE: | £465m | |
| TOUCH: | 945-955p | 12-MONTH HIGH / LOW: | 1,155p | 873p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2% | PE RATIO: | 29 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 426p* | NET DEBT | 46% | |
| Year to 30 Apr | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012** | 141 | 17.8 | 56.4 | 21.8 |
| 2013** | 95 | 14.4 | 43.2 | 22.5 |
| 2014 | 100 | 16.1 | 41.5 | 18.1 |
| 2015 | 185 | 5.5 | 15.4 | 18.1 |
| 2016 | 277 | 11.2 | 32.7 | 19.3 |
| % change | +50 | +104 | +112 | +7 |
Ex-div:22 Sep Payment:21 Oct *Includes intangible assets of £190m, or 387p a share **Adjusted for October 2014 rights issue | ||||
