Square Pharmaceuticals, the country's largest drugmaker, achieved a 10 per cent year-on-year increase in net profit for the fiscal year 2023-24, despite navigating the turbulent waters created by global macroeconomic challenges.
The company posted a profit of Tk 2,092.91 crore for the year ending June 30, 2024, according to a disclosure posted on the Dhaka Stock Exchange’s (DSE) website. Consolidated earnings per share (EPS) rose to Tk 23.61, up from Tk 21.41 of the previous year.
Additionally, Square Pharmaceuticals declared a record 110 per cent cash dividend for FY24, its highest ever by 5 per cent from last year, and plans to invest Tk 500 crore to boost its production capacity.
SQURPHARMA’s board of directors has announced the approval of the Tk 500 crore investment citing balancing, modernisation, rehabilitation, and expansion (BMRE) of its operations. This investment will be used to acquire capital machinery and land for future growth and expansion.
The company will hold its annual general meeting (AGM) on December 18, through a digital platform to approve both the dividend and the audited financial statement. The record date for shareholders eligible to participate is set for November 21.
In contrast, during the first half of the fiscal year 2023-24 (July–December), Square Pharmaceuticals, the flagship company of Square Group, posted a net profit of Tk 1,124.90 crore, up from Tk 1,062.85 crore made during the same period the previous year.
Despite facing significant macroeconomic challenges both globally and domestically, the company achieved strong financial performance, largely aided by supportive policies and the installation of advanced machinery to produce high-quality drugs.
A notable driver of this growth was the inclusion of anti-Covid drugs in Square Pharma’s export portfolio, which significantly boosted earnings. During this six-month period, the company's EPS rose to Tk 12.69, compared to Tk 11.99 in the corresponding period last year.
However, during the second quarter (October–December), the pharmaceutical giant reported a net profit of Tk 524 crore, up from Tk 512 crore in the same quarter the previous year, with an EPS of Tk 5.92, compared to Tk 5.78 posted a year earlier. Square Pharma also recorded a consolidated net asset value (NAV) per share of Tk 132.07 as of December 31, 2023.
In the July–September quarter of FY24, the company achieved a consolidated profit exceeding Tk 600 crore, reflecting a 9.1 per cent year-on-year increase, with EPS rising to Tk 6.77 from Tk 6.20 in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year.
The pharmaceuticals giant reported Tk 1,897 crore in net profit in FY23, compared to Tk 1,818 crore recorded in the previous fiscal. It reported a consolidated NAV per share of Tk 129.95.
Square Pharmaceuticals witnessed a 15.06 per cent year-on-year surge in export receipts in the fiscal year 2022–23, thanks to policy support and the incorporation of tech-savvy machinery to produce better quality deliverables. In the last fiscal, the publicly-traded company’s standalone export revenue was Tk 196 crore, which was Tk 170 crore in FY21-22.
Meanwhile, its domestic revenue rose by 4.5 per cent to Tk 6,762 crore in FY23 from Tk 6,471 crore in the previous FY22.
Listed back in 1995, SQURPHARMA’s shares closed at Tk 217.50 each on the DSE trading floor on Thursday.
