1996 A Transitional Year For Royce

Royce Laboratories of the USA believes that the current year is one of transition for the company. During the year, the firm's operations will become profitable for the first time, according to Patrick McEnany, chairman and chief executive of Royce, speaking at the annual shareholders meeting.

Three significant products have been launched by Royce since December 1995, he pointed out. These are hydroxychloroquine, captopril and hydrocodone bitartrate/acetaminophen. Sales of these products, along with increased sales of quinine sulfate, have been the primary causes of the firm's movement to profitability.

Sales of hydroxychloroquine sulfate and the hydrocodone product line have been significant, but sales ramp-up for these drugs is taking longer to reach the levels the company expects them to reach, and thus has impacted on projected earnings for the 1996 second quarter and fiscal year. Regarding sales of captopril, significantly greater competition than was anticipated before its launch has resulted in lower sales and profit margins than expected.