Home ›› 26 Sep 2021 ›› Stock
The investment of Beximco Pharmaceuticals Limited, the local drugmaker giant, grew exponentially amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
It has already invested Tk 1,000 crore in establishing ‘Unit III’ solids, semi-solids, and liquids facilities in Tongi. The unit has partially commenced its operation and is expected to become fully operational by this year, which will help boost its profitability in days to come.
The market heavyweight company, which accounts for more than 2 percent of the total Dhaka Stock Exchange market capitalisation, recently received approval from the central bank to acquire a 54.6 per cent stake in Sanofi Bangladesh with an investment of Tk 480 crore.
The company has already asked for Tk 375 crore loans from Agrani Bank for the leveraged acquisition. As per the latest financial statement, Sanofi’s revenue was Tk 388 crore.
Meanwhile, the company intends to repay it within the next five years and the interest rate may go up to 9 per cent. Hence, this leveraged acquisition will increase the company’s debt burden and its incremental financial expenses may go up to Tk 30 crore per year, according to the analysis of EBL Securities Limited.
The annual production capacity of the ‘Unit III’ project is 5 billion solid-dose tablets, capsules and sachets, which are almost equal to the existing capacity, including 70 million semi-solid units, including creams, ointments, liquid sachets, and lotions; and 130 million large- and small-volume bottles of liquid formulations.
Beximco Pharma’s export grew 3.5 folds higher during the last 5 years to hit Tk 275 crore in FY21 from Tk 80 crore in FY15.
The company is the first Bangladeshi company that entered Gulf Pharma market (Kuwait) for the first time. It also launched five products—Nadolol, Carvedilol, Sotalol, Methocarbamol and Metformin-- in the US market.
In addition, it entered the Australian and Canadian markets as well by launching Pantoprazole as the country’s first company, said the EBL analysis.
The company has been supplying several other drugs for Covid-19 at both home and abroad.
It has two subsidiaries-Nuvista Pharma Limited and Beximco API Limited, which also help boost sales and reduce production costs.
Beximco Pharma shares skyrocketed by around 250 per cent to Tk 245.6 as of Thursday from Tk 70.3 on June 1, 2020, when after the DSE resumed trade from the 66-day coronavirus restrictions.
In May 2020 when the world was paralyzed by the coronavirus outbreak, the local drug maker grabbed headlines globally for being the first company to market redeliver, the antiviral drug that showed promise in treating COVID-19 patients.
Three months later, it announced a tie-up with Serum Institute of India to be the “exclusive distributor” of Oxford’s Covid-19 vaccine in Bangladesh. Under the deal, Beximco Pharma was expected to supply 30 million doses of the Covidshield vaccine to Bangladesh.
Beximco Pharma’s third-quarter profit in fiscal 2020-21 stood at Tk370.60 crore, a rise of 41.28 per cent from Tk262.31 crore recorded in the same period a year earlier.
It disbursed at least 12.5 per cent cash dividend over the last five years, but 15 per cent cash and 10 per cent bonus dividends in the last year. Its dividend payouts are still the lowest among the competitors- Square Pharmaceuticals and ACME Laboratories Limited.
Its paid-up capital is Tk 446 crore, while the total number of shares is 44.61 crore. Its reserve stood at Tk 2,276 crore and the company’s current price-earnings ratio at 21.52, as of September 16 this year.
The sponsor-directors hold 30.18 per cent, institutional investors 19.71 per cent, foreign 30.41 per cent, and the general public 19.70 per cent of the company’s shares.
Beximco Pharma commenced its manufacturing operation in 1980. It was listed with Dhaka Stock Exchange in 1985 and with Chittagong Stock Exchange in 1995.
