Hyphens Pharma profit down 25.6%, mainly from one-off IPO expenses

SPECIALTY pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare group Hyphens Pharma International posted a profit after tax of S$1.6 million for its second quarter, down 25.6 per cent from a year ago, mainly due to one-off IPO expenses.

Revenue ticked up 0.5 per cent to S$30.9 million, mainly due to increased revenue from specialty pharma principals segment following higher demand for radiology products and improved sales of dermocosmetic products in the proprietary brands segment.

Earnings per share stood at 0.54 Singapore cents, down from 0.72 cents previously.

No dividend was declared for the quarter.

In the group's outlook for Singapore, it noted the trend of growing healthcare demand continues to be driven by an ageing population with growing healthcare needs.

In Vietnam, the pharma market is expected to continue its steady growth. However, foreign invested entities operating in the pharmaceutical sector are coming under growing scrutiny by Vietnam's Ministry of Health as the Pharmacy Law 2016 is being progressively implemented, said the group.

In Malaysia, the recent change in government and the scrapping of Goods and Services Tax has affected purchase patterns. Further disruptions may potentially occur when the new sales and services tax is implemented, but the overall healthcare demand is not expected to be significantly affected, said the group.

The group said: "We are actively working on implementing those strategies such as expanding and strengthening our product range, looking at geographic expansion and seeking strategic opportunities."

It is expecting to move its operation into its new integrated facility in the second half of 2018. This will provide the group a more conducive operating environment and greater productivity when all business units are integrated under the same roof, it said.