Spain’s Faes Farma has posted a reasonable set of results for the first half of 2008 which show that net profit rose 9.5% to 14.2 million euros, while sales grew 2.6% to 101.7 million euros.
The revenue increase was boosted by the contribution of Ingaso, a fellow Spanish firm which specialises in nutrition and animal health and was acquired in October last year. Faes also benefited from sales of the postmenopausal osteoporosis agent Bonviva (ibandronate), a Roche drug the Bilbao-headquartered firm markets in Spain as Bondenza.
The company, which noted that it has implemented a cost-cutting programme in terms of personnel expenses (-8.5%) and other operating expenses (-5.7%), also gave an update on its investigational oral allergy drug bilastine. Faes said “we are currently negotiating important agreements for emerging markets” and possible co-marketing deals.
Meantime, Almirall says it has not received any approach from companies looking to buy shares in the Spanish drugmaker.
In a statement to the Spanish Securities and Exchange Commission (CNMV), the Barcelona-based firm said it has not received “any formal or informal bid or indication of any, bid for a stake in Almirall”. It added that it has “no news of any plans to acquire a significant stake in the company”, denying a report from Spanish radio station Intereconomia.
Reuters reports that Gilde Healthcare Partners, a venture capital firm based in The Netherlands, had been considering making a bid to buy a 30% stake in Almirall at 18.80 euros per share. However a spokesman for the fund told the news agency that the drugmaker “is just too big for us”.
