Halcygen reports maiden profit

Antibiotic developer Halcygen Pharmaceuticals has reported a maiden net profit of $3.25 million for the year ended June 30, 2010, largely driven by the company’s acquisition of Mayne Pharma International last year from Hospira Inc.

The result contrasts with a loss of $3.76 million reported for the previous year.

The company reported EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) of $12.2 million, noting however that the figure would have been higher were it not for a high Australian dollar throughout the period.

Adjusting US sales of its oral antibiotic Doryx for current foreign exchange rates, sales were up eight percent year on year to ovr $200 million. Halcygen attributed much of its improved performance to the acquisition of drug developer Mayne Pharma International in September last year, a move which the company described as ‘transformational’.

Halcygen declared a dividend of two cents per share, indicating that it also expected to make a special dividend of one cent per share payable in the first half of the next calendar year following a review of the half-year results.