Hikma's first-half 2006 income rises 17.6%

Amman, Jordan-headquartered Hikma Pharmaceutical, which is focused on developing, manufacturing and marketing a broad range of generic and in-licensed products, says that, for the first six months of 2006, it achieved revenue of $154.9 million, up 17.6% on the comparable period last year, while its gross margin was 51.6%, down from 55.2%. However, the firm warned that its full-year generic sales would be lower than anticipated, causing its share price to fall L0.29 to L4.05.

The firm says that its operating profit grew 3.3% to $42.2 million as the operating margin fell to 27.2% from 31.0%, primarily due to increased investment in production capacity, in-sales and marketing, as well as R&D expenses, together with higher corporate costs largely attributable to its new status as a publicly-quoted company.

Hikma noted that profit before tax rose 9.5% to $42.4 million and profit attributable to shareholders for the period increased 19.9% to $30.1 million. Diluted earnings per share inched up 3.0% to $0.17, reflecting an increase in the company's weighted average number of shares following its initial public offering in November 2005.