Grifols increases plasma capture by 22% and earns 143 million until June

The plasma derivatives manufacturer Grifols increased plasma uptake by 22% in the first 28 weeks of this year, continuing its recovery from the impact of the pandemic.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
28 July 2022 Thursday 03:54
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Grifols increases plasma capture by 22% and earns 143 million until June

The plasma derivatives manufacturer Grifols increased plasma uptake by 22% in the first 28 weeks of this year, continuing its recovery from the impact of the pandemic. The Catalan pharmaceutical company has informed the CNMV today that its first half-year accounts with the impact of the acquisition of its German competitor Biotest have closed with a profit of 143.6 million euros, 46.2% less than in the same period of 2021, due to the higher financial expenses derived from the purchase.

Instead, it has increased its income by 10.8%, to 2,810 million euros. Without the favorable effect of the exchange rate, due to the fall of the euro against other currencies, revenue growth would have been 3.4%.

The firm's business was boosted by the good performance of the Biopharma division, which sells plasma-derived proteins: its revenues reached 2,313 million euros, 16.5% more, thanks to higher plasma donations, the increase of volume of the main proteins, the increase in prices and a greater weight in the sales of more expensive products.

Sales of its diagnostic equipment unit, on the other hand, fell by 16.7%, to 329 million euros, mainly due to the termination of the agreements to carry out tests for Covid and the mandatory tests for the Zika virus.

The EBITDA or gross operating profit, which does not include financial expenses, amounted to 618.3 million euros, 2.5% less than in the same period of 2021, and the margin stood at 22% of sales .

The company assured that one of the priorities of its management will be to reduce the weight of the debt, which has skyrocketed to 8,994 million euros due to the purchase of Biotest, and has increased its weight to nine times the EBITDA, due to the fall of the benefits caused by the pandemic.

The company recalled that it does not have significant maturities until 2025, that its financing does not include maximum leverage commitments, and that 65% is at fixed rates, so the foreseeable rate hike will have little impact. Likewise, the company ensures that at the end of the semester it had 1,611 million euros in liquidity, including 525 million euros of cash on hand.

As part of its efforts to reduce debt, the company announced that it has sold the assets of MedKeeper, a subsidiary of the group in the United States that markets computer applications for hospital pharmacy, to the American company Becton Dickinson for around 91 million euros. According to the company, the sale is part of the divestment plan for non-strategic activities.