Axis-Shield's PoCs drive 2007 sales up 10%

Scottish in vitro diagnostics firm Axis-Shield said that the negative impact of a L800,000 ($1.6 million) charge related to the departure of two executive directors led to it reporting a flat pretax income of L2.0 million for 2007. Excluding this, and a share-based payment of L300,000, the Dundee-based firm's profits would have been up 41% on those achieved in 2006.

Annual revenue grew 9.7% to L66.7 million, in line with its previously-issued forecast (Marketletter December 24, 2007), largely due to the 21.4% expansion of its point-of-care product lines, which contributed L25.0 million. Axis said that, while sales of its Nycomed range of diagnostics, up 9.7% to L17.1 million, had been the principal driver, its Afinion PoC system achieved turnover of L3.4 million in its first full year on the market.

On the negative side, the revenue derived from Axis' laboratory division fell L200,000 to L18.8 million. The firm said that this was due to a combination of the continuing weakness of the US dollar as well as the drop in turnover from its homocysteine product, which fell 17.6% to L6.1 million due to competition from unlicensed versions in the USA.