Schwarz’ Neupro performs well despite profit falls

Schwarz announced that sales of its products have dipped so far this year, though the outlook for 2006 currently looks unchanged due to strong performances of its new drug.

Group sales for the company slipped by 1.1 per cent to ?483.4 million in the first half of the year when compared to sales in 2006 with a slide of 3.2 per cent after adjustments for exchange rate effects were taken into consideration.

Gross profits for the organisation fell by 1.2 per cent to a total of ?326.4 million in the first half of the year, though margins remained roughly the same at 67.5 per cent in comparison with 2005.

Despite this Schwarz Pharma announced that its new Neupro rotigotine transdermal patch had been successfully launched, exceeding company expectations. The product, used for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, outperformed sales predictions by around
?2 million.

The company expects the drug to operate well in several Western European markets, with the exception of France, where business has slipped due to a difficult conditions hampered by government price reductions.

Meanwhile, sales in Eastern European regions have increased and the drug has already been successfully launched in the UK and Ireland, with launches in several other countries expected in the coming months.

Schwarz comments that it expects sales for 2006 to reach ?900 million following continued investment in the expansion of its development as well as its aim to market new drugs.

As a result it anticipates sales to break even in the second half of the year, with employee figures rising to 5.7 per cent since December 31st 2005.

© Adfero Ltd