Stellar full year at Dechra Pharmaceuticals

3rd Sep 2013 07:15

Veterinary pharmaceuticals firm Dechra Pharmaceuticals posted a robust set of full year results, after a strong performance at its branded pharmaceutical products, and expects progress to continue despite a challenging environment.Profit before tax on continuing operations rose 59.7% (at constant exchange rate) for the year ended June 30th 2013. The figure includes a full year of its acquisition Eurovet as well as a solid core performance. Group revenue on continuing operations climbed 56.6% despite slow trading in the third quarter and third party supply issues in the US.Underlying diluted EPS for continuing operations grew 42.2% at 29.07p.Dechra said it enjoyed a strong US Core Performance with revenues rising 4.7%compared to the prior year to £20.5m. Its US performance had been hit by supply issues for the ophthalmic and dermatology ranges during the third quarter.Its European Pharmaceuticals business achieved sales of £168.7m, up 66.3% at constant exchange rates over the previous year. On a like-for-like (LFL) basis, adjusting 2012 to include a full year of Eurovet revenue, growth was 5%, despite being hit by slow trading in the third quarter due to bad weather, as previously reported. On a like-for-like basis, all key therapeutic areas delivered a good performance, the group explained.The board is proposing a final dividend of 9.66p per share, reflecting underlying EPS growth, and bringing the total dividend per share to 14.00p for the financial year ended 2013.Dechra said current trading is ahead of last year and in line with management's expectations and it is confident that it will continue to perform well despite a challenging environment.Shares in the group rose 1.02% at 690.00p in early trading in London.CJ