***everyones attention please****, page-3

Come on SB you can't ignore this one . $2 billion sales is pretty reassuring...rofl

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Sigma Announces Profit After Tax of $59.6 million for 2004/05
Sigma Company Limited (SIG) today announced a profit after tax (PAT) of
$59.6 million for the year ending 31 January 2005, comprising underlying profit
of $57.3 million, up 29.6%, and a $2.3m one-off impact from tax consolidations.
The result highlights improved performances in both the Pharmaceutical Division and
the Healthcare Division. The EBIT margin in Pharmaceuticals grew to 19.8%, up
from 18.0% in 2003/04, whilst the Healthcare EBIT margin grew to 2.5% from 2.2%.
Group sales revenue increased by 10.1% to $2.1 billion and Group EBIT increased
25.4% to $104.8 million. Sigma also maintained its focus on Return on Capital
Employed (ROCE), which increased to 19.9% from 18.6%.
Reflecting on the magnitude of growth in earnings, Sigma’s Chairman, Dr John
Stocker AO, said the excellent result was testament to the resilience of Sigma’s
underlying business strategy.
“Our business strategy is delivering results that enable us to reinvest in our future.
Significant redevelopment of our Dandenong facility will lay the foundations for future
growth in our Pharmaceuticals Division further confirming our commitment to being
Australia’s leading pharmaceutical manufacturer,” he said.
“The new IT platform for the Healthcare Division will deliver added savings in 2006/7
and Sigma’s new Amcal Max brand offers pharmacists a unique alternative for
meeting the needs of their customers,” Dr Stocker said.
Pharmaceuticals
EBIT growth of 19.9% to $63.9 million in the Pharmaceutical Division provided a
strong return on capital employed of 20.4%, despite significant increases in
compliance-related expenditure.
The Pharmaceutical Division’s EBIT to Sales ratio improved to 19.8% from 18.0% in
2003/2004, reflecting the improving strength of the portfolio of brands.
Sigma’s Managing Director, Mr Elmo de Alwis, reports that the Company’s strategy
of seeking value-adding acquisitions has been instrumental in the results achieved.
“The Pharmaceutical Division has continued to make strategic acquisitions over the
past 12 months. Adding products such as Coumadin® and Ledermix®, and
assuming distribution rights for the Ferrosan® range of products will make strong
contributions to future results,” Mr de Alwis said. “We remain confident of capturing
similar opportunities in the future.”