The Positive
+ Strong growth in specialty pharma. The largest earning driver was specialty pharma. EBITDA more than doubled to S$7.9mn with the inclusion of recently acquired Novem. We believe the re-opening has increased surgeries and visits to hospitals and specialists, thereby driving up revenue.
The Negative
– Softer proprietary margins. EBITDA margins for proprietary brands declined by 1.4% points YoY to 7.4% in 2H22. We believe higher production and product development costs contributed to the weakness in margins.
Â
Outlook
We expect slower growth post the pent-up demand after the re-opening. New products launched will support sales, such as Nabota® (botox), Meradan® (steroid eczema cream) and Winlevi® (acne cream). Hyphens continue to build medium-term franchises: (i) DocMed – a platform for doctors, drug companies and other healthcare providers; (ii) Proprietary brands in skin health products; (iii) Novem – expand specialty products distribution into the public sector.
Paul has 20 years of experience as a fund manager and sell-side analyst. During his time as fund manager, he has managed multiple funds and mandates including capital guaranteed, dividend income, renewable energy, single country and regionally focused funds.
He graduated from Monash University and had completed both his Chartered Financial Analyst and Australian CPA programme.