Spain's Zeltia preparing for product launches and partnering deals

Zeltia, the only listed biotechnology company in Spain and a componentof the country's IBEX 35 index, has posted a 21% increase in net sales for the six months to June 30 to 34.9 million euros ($30.5 million). Ordinary income grew 111% to 8.12 million euros, though net income fell 48% to 11.6 million euros. The company noted that the like, year-earlier figure was inflated by extraordinary income from the sale of its own stock.

Jose Maria Fernandez Sousa-Faro, Zeltia's president, described the group's performance as satisfactory, saying that "we met our expectations, and our plans are on schedule." The Zeltia group is involved in a number of business areas, ranging from insectides to wood treatments and real estate, but interest in the firm and its future plans is focused on the activities of its Pharma Mar subsidiary, which accounts for around 90%-95% of the group's value.

Investor interest in Zeltia has been considerable of late, to the extent that its share price has increased 45-fold since 1998. The group is capitalized at around 2.5 billion euros, making it one of the largest biotechnology stocks in Europe. The principal reason for the excitement surrounding the company is its late-stage anti-cancer agent ET-743 (ecteinascidin).