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Square Pharmaceuticals has exhibited a 15 per cent year-on-year growth in profit for January-March FY24 to Tk 4.41 billion, supported by higher revenue.
It witnessed an 8.44 per cent year-on-year growth in revenue to Tk 17.22 billion in the quarter.
Muhammad Zahangir Alam, chief financial officer (CFO) of Square Pharmaceuticals, said the revenue growth was significant in the context of the economy being squeezed by inflationary pressure.
The drug maker refrained from increasing prices of most products, considering that people had little disposable income amid high inflation.
Nevertheless, Square Pharmaceuticals was able to increase revenue ensuring more accessibility of its products in the domestic market.
"Expansion of our local market facilitated the revenue growth and a 15 per cent growth in net profit is very good for a large company like Square Pharmaceuticals," Mr. Alam said.
To ensure wider product access, the company's year-on-year selling and distribution expenses rose 29 per cent in January-March FY24.
Its interest income climbed 18 per cent year-on-year during the quarter through March for interest rate hikes.
Besides, the company realised capital gains by trading in some securities in the capital market.
At the same time, Square Pharmaceuticals experienced a sharp decline in foreign exchange gains and cash incentives in the third quarter this year, compared to the same period of the previous year.
The CFO said the company had been forced to liquidate a substantial amount of foreign currency in the previous fiscal year.
In the nine months through March, revenue jumped 12.59 per cent year-on-year.
Consequently, Square Pharmaceuticals experienced a 9 per cent growth in profit in July-March FY24, compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year.
Meanwhile, the stock of Square Pharmaceuticals rose to Tk 221.5 per share on the Dhaka Stock Exchange on January 23 this year from Tk 209.8 per share on December 24, 2023.
Later, the price exhibited volatility and declined to Tk 218.2 per share on April 8 and finally closed at Tk 208 per share on Monday.