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Johannesburg - Healthcare firm Adcock Ingram Holdings said buying 51% of Ghana's Ayrton Drug Manufacturing would serve as a template for other acquisitions in West Africa.
"Our expectation opportunity in Africa is that we are looking at developing and expanding," said Adcock Ingram CEO Jonathan Louw. "We are using Ayrton as a footprint into other surrounding countries."
Louw was commenting following publication of Adcock's full-year results, in which it posted a 16.1% rise in profit bolstered by volume growth and price increases. The group also unveiled terms of a R1.3bn empowerment deal.
Shares in Adcock Ingram rose 2.8% higher to R51.70 per share in Tuesday early afternoon trade on the JSE valuing the firm, in its first year of listing, at R8.75bn.
Adcock Ingram is South Africa's second-largest drugs manufacturer and owns brands such as Panado and flu remedy Corenza Para-C.
"Ayrton stood out with its good governance, good information and technology communication and because it was a good strategic fit for us," he said.
Commenting on the group's financial results, Louw said the trading environment had been "demanding" but conceded healtcare companies "have not felt the pinch as much".
Intriguingly, he believed healthcare firms offered comfort to individuals whose health had been affected by the recession.
"One could say people get more sick with the recession and need comfort," said Louw. "We are making comfort medicine and we have seen more demand in the acute side of the business."
- Fin24.com
