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MILAN, ITALY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 03/06/07 -- - 2006 results: Revenue EUR 576.2
million, operating income EUR 120.3 million, net income EUR 74.0
million.
- Dividend proposed: EUR 0.185 per share, an increase of 35% over
dividend paid last year. Overall dividend EUR 37 million.
- 2007 first two months' sales EUR 110 million, in line with the
same period of the preceding year.
Milan, 6 March 2007 - Recordati's Board of Directors approved the
consolidated financial statements for the year 2006 as well as
Recordati SpA's accounts.
Consolidated financial highlights
- Consolidated revenue is EUR 576.2 million, in line with that of
the preceding year. International sales are EUR 372.8 million, up
5.1%, and represent 64.7% of total sales. Pharmaceutical sales are
EUR 537.8 million with a 5.4% growth of the international
business. In Italy sales are down by 7.8% due to price reductions
of reimbursed products and the reorganization of our detailing
activities. Lercanidipine, Recordati's original antihypertensive
drug, continues to perform very well with global sales growing by
21.2%. Pharmaceutical chemicals sales are EUR 38.4 million and
are substantially in line with those of the preceding year.
- Operating income, at 20.9% of sales, is EUR 120.3 million, an
increase of 8.3% over the preceding year. The operating margin
improvement is mainly due to gross profit which further improved
to a margin on sales of 66.7% thanks to a favorable product mix.
- Net income at 12.8% of sales is EUR 74.0 million, an increase
of 14.7% over 2005.
- The net financial position at 31 December 2006 is positive at
EUR 22.4 million (EUR 26.2 million at 31 December 2005) despite
the payment of EUR 45 million for the acquisition of Grupo Jaba's
pharmaceutical operations in Portugal. Shareholders' equity
further increased and is EUR 366.8 million.
2006 operations and company development highlights
During 2006 our strong commitment to the further development of
lercanidipine was the focus of our efforts which resulted in
various positive achievements.
- At the beginning of April the 20mg dosage form of Zanidip®
(lercanidipine) was launched on the British market by Recordati
Pharmaceuticals. With a sales organization of 70 medical
representatives our subsidiary is relaunching our main drug in
this important market and is ready to effectively launch in the
future the new products currently in our pipeline.
- Also during April an agreement was reached with the licensee UCB
to buy back the sales and marketing rights in Germany of
Corifeo®, one of the two brands under which lercanidipine is
sold on the German market, for a price of EUR 10 million.
Corifeo® is now being sold on that market by our subsidiary
Merckle Recordati.
- At the end of July we received the approval for our new product
Zanitek®, a fixed combination of lercanidipine and enalapril,
from the BfArM, the German medicines agency. Germany will
therefore act as Reference Member State in the mutual recognition
approval process for the rest of Europe which is expected to be
completed during 2007.
- At the end of December a non-exclusive agreement was signed with
Sigma-Tau, a leading Italian pharmaceutical company, for the
marketing and sale in Italy of our new antihypertensive drug. The
launch is expected to take place at the beginning of 2008
following approval in 2007. Agreements have already been finalized
with other partners in France, Spain, Benelux, the Nordic
countries including Finland, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, the Middle
East including Israel, and South Africa. Further agreements are
near completion.
During 2006 we also further expanded our direct coverage of the
European pharmaceutical market. We established a direct presence
in Portugal following that in France, Germany, Greece, Italy,
Spain and the United Kingdom. On 28 July an agreement was signed
for the acquisition of Jaba Farmacêutica and the other
pharmaceutical businesses belonging to the Grupo Jaba in Portugal.
The purchase price was EUR 45 million approximately but may be
adjusted contingent upon the full year 2006 operating results. The
closing of the transaction took place at the end of November.
In June an exclusive license agreement was signed with Ony Inc., a
U.S. drug development company, for the marketing and sale in
Europe of Infasurf®, a calf derived surfactant for the
prevention and treatment of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome
(RDS). Infasurf®, together with Stanate® (stannsoporfin), a
drug licensed for Europe from Infacare, USA, shall form the basis
for Recordati's new European franchise in the highly specialized
area of neonatology.
In connection with our original research the first proof of
concept trials conducted to evaluate the therapeutical efficacy of
REC 2615 and REC 0545 were completed. A topical formulation of REC
2615, a new chemical entity with potential use for female sexual
dysfunction, tested in a pharmacodynamic clinical proof of concept
trial, did not reach statistical significance on the main
pharmacological end point. It is believed that this may be due to
the too slow build up of tissue levels and therefore reformulation
work is ongoing. REC 0545 in a proof of concept, crossover
clinical trial conducted to test the efficacy of the molecule in
the treatment of overactive bladder no statistically significant
difference between active treatment and placebo was evidenced. An
in depth evaluation is ongoing, including the possibility of
pursuing the development of another compound with a mixed
mechanism of action, including 5HT1A antagonism.
First two months 2007
- At the beginning of January Recordati initiated commercial
operations in the Irish pharmaceutical market where Zanidip®
(lercanidipine) is now promoted directly by its subsidiary
following the termination of the agreement with the previous
licensee.
- In February a non-exclusive agreement was signed with Meda, an
international pharmaceutical company based in Sweden, for the
marketing and sale in Germany of Zaneril®, the new
antihypertensive drug which combines lercanidipine and enalapril.
- Group sales in the first two months of 2007 are EUR 110
million, in line with the same period of the preceding year.
Dividend
Based on the year's results the Board will propose a dividend of
EUR 0.185 per existing share (EUR 0.1375 per share last year) to
be paid to the shares outstanding as from Thursday 27 April 2007
(trading ex-dividend as of Monday 23 April 2007), excluding those
shares in treasury stock. The overall amount of the 2006 proposed
dividend is EUR 37 million compared to the 2005 dividend of EUR
27.5 million.
Other Board resolutions
The Board also resolved to submit to the Annual and Extraordinary
Shareholders' Meetings the following proposals:
- to renew the authorization to buy back and dispose of Recordati
shares until the Annual Shareholders' Meeting convened to approve
the 2007 accounts;
- to confirm the appointment of Mr. Federico Nazzari (coopted by
the 8 February 2007 Board Meeting) to the Board of Directors;
- to modify the company bylaws in compliance with Law 262/2005
(the so-called "Savings Law");
- to renew the five year authorization to the Board of Directors
to effect share capital increases (for a maximum of EUR
50,000,000) and to issue convertible bonds (for a maximum of EUR
80,000,000), including the relative necessary change to the
company bylaws.
The proposal to renew the authorization to buy back and dispose of
Recordati shares would continue granting the Board the possibility
of using shares for equity acquisitions or as consideration for
strategic agreements; of allowing the company to invest in its own
shares; and of servicing current and future stock option plans
with existing rather than new shares. The company would be allowed
to purchase up to 20,000,000 Recordati existing ordinary (common)
shares, which includes those shares held in Treasury stock at any
given time, for a maximum cash outlay of EUR 120 million. The
purchase price must be at least equal to the shares' nominal value
(EUR 0.125) and must not exceed the average official Stock
Exchange price recorded over the 5 trading days prior to the
transaction, plus 5%. Possible purchases must comply with the
Issuers' Rules and Regulations. The company currently has
6,654,891 shares in Treasury stock which amounts to 3.224% of the
current share capital.
The Board also accepted the proposal which the Statutory Auditors'
Committee intends to submit to the Annual Shareholders' Meeting,
regarding the extension of the audit assignment to Deloitte&Touche
S.p.A. until the Meeting which will approve the accounts at 31
December 2010, in order to bring the length of the assignment in
line with the nine year limit provided by Legislative Decree 58/98
as recently modified by Legislative Decree 303/2006.
Annual Meeting of Shareholders
The Board of Directors convened the Annual Shareholders' Meeting
to be held on first call on Wednesday, 11 April 2007, at 10.00
a.m., and on second call on Thursday, 12 April 2007, at 10.00
a.m., at the company's registered offices. Shareholders will be
called upon to:
- approve the 2006 accounts, the dividend to be distributed, and
the renewal of the authorization to purchase and dispose of own
shares;
- appoint a new Director;
- extend the length of the audit assignment to Deloitte&Touche
S.p.A.;
- amend the company bylaws pursuant to Law 262/2005;
- and to resolve upon the renewal of the five year authorization
to the Board of Directors to effect share capital increases (for a
maximum of EUR 50,000,000) and to issue convertible bonds (for a
maximum of EUR 80,000,000), amending accordingly the company
bylaws.
Recordati, established in 1926, is a European pharmaceutical
group, listed on the Italian Stock Exchange (Reuters RECI.MI,
Bloomberg REC IM, ISIN IT 0003828271), dedicated to the research,
development, manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceuticals, with
headquarters in Milan, Italy, operations in the main European
countries, and a total staff of over 2,000. A European field force
of over 1,000 medical representatives promotes a wide range of
innovative pharmaceuticals, both proprietary and under license, in
a number of therapeutic areas. Recordati's current and growing
coverage of the European pharmaceutical market makes it a partner
of choice for new product licenses from companies which do not
have European marketing organizations. Recordati is committed to
the research of new drug entities within the cardiovascular and
urogenital therapeutic areas in which its research team has proven
scientific competence and a track record of discovery and
development of original drugs, the most recent of which,
lercanidipine, a latest generation calcium channel blocker for the
treatment of hypertension, is the company's leading product.
Consolidated revenue for 2006 was EUR 576.2 million, operating
income was EUR 120.3 million and net income was EUR 74.0
million.
Statements contained in this release, other than historical facts,
are "forward-looking statements" (as such term is defined in the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). These
statements are based on currently available information, on
current best estimates, and on assumptions believed to be
reasonable. This information, these estimates and assumptions may
prove to be incomplete or erroneous, and involve numerous risks
and uncertainties, beyond the Company's control. Hence, actual
results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by
such forward-looking statements.
All mentions and descriptions of Recordati products are intended
solely as information on the general nature of the company's
activities and are not intended to indicate the advisability of
administering any product in any particular instance.
RECORDATI GROUP
Summary of consolidated results prepared in accordance with the
International Accounting Standards and International Financial
Reporting Standards (IAS/IFRS)
Earnings per share (EPS) are based on average shares outstanding
during each year, 200,053,683 in 2006 and 198,050,942 in 2005, net
of average treasury stock which amounted to 5,720,085 in 2006 and
4,798,664 in 2005.
(1) Diluted earnings per share is calculated taking into account
new shares authorized but not yet issued
Pending completion of independent and statutory audits.
RECORDATI GROUP
Summary of consolidated results prepared in accordance with the
International Accounting Standards and International Financial
Reporting Standards (IAS/IFRS)
Pending completion of independent and statutory audits.
RECORDATI GROUP
Summary of consolidated results prepared in accordance with the
International Accounting Standards and International Financial
Reporting Standards (IAS/IFRS)
(thousands of EUR )
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|EQUITY AND LIABILITIES | 31.12.2006| 31.12.2005|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Share capital | 25,802| 25,631|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Capital in excess of par | 73,165| 67,664|
|value | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Treasury stock | (30,653)| (20,410)|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Hedging reserve | (1,081)| (3,158)|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Translation reserve | 336| 1,824|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Other reserves | 24,926| 23,485|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Retained earnings | 200,276| * 162,718|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Net income for the year | 74,031| 64,543|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|SHAREHOLDERS EQUITY | 366,802| 322,297|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Loans due after one year | 83,697| 110,057|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Employees termination | 22,587| 22,821|
|pay | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Deferred tax liabilities | 9,402| * 8,673|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Other non-current | 5,645| 11,240|
|liabilities | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|TOTAL NON-CURRENT | 121,331| 152,791|
|LIABILITIES | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Trade payables | 71,537| 90,095|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Other payables | 32,159| 33,151|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Tax liabilities | 22,076| 9,780|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Other current liabilities| 413| 481|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Provisions | 16,479| 6,937|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Change in fair value of | 1,081| 3,158|
|hedging derivatives (cash| | |
|flow hedge) | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Change in fair value of | 3,949| 0|
|hedging derivatives (fair| | |
|value hedge) | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Loans due within one year| 20,446| 22,718|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|Bank overdrafts | 14,574| 5,991|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES| 182,714| 172,311|
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
|TOTAL EQUITY AND | 670,847| 647,399|
|LIABILITIES | | |
+-------------------------+------------+------------+
* Restated following the adoption of IAS/IFRS by the parent
company.
Pending completion of independent and statutory audits.