4th Mar 2014 11:15
LONDON (Alliance News) - Abcam PLC raised its interim dividend in the half year ended December 31, 2013, as it saw pretax profit rise boosted by revenue growth.
The biotechnology company raised its interim dividend to 2.13 pence from 1.94 pence in the previous year.
Abcam posted a pretax profit of GBP21.2 million, up from GBP19.9 million in the previous year, as revenue rose to GBP62.0 million from GBP57.3 million in the previous year. Revenue growth was driven by the the company's range of RabMad reagents and its non-primary antibody product lines.
Although the company saw revenue growth in the Americas, it remained cautious about the US market as funding from the National Institute of Health has been declining since 2003. The final 2014 US NIH budget was an improvement to the original plan, Abcam noted, but it did not completely offset the reductions in central research expenditure made during 2013's sequestration.
In Japan, revenue declined, as despite Japan's significant government stimulus package implemented in April 2013, the company's "market intelligence indicated that the release of research funding has been slower than expected."
The company recently opened an office in Shanghai as part of its strategy to improve distribution in the region. In preparation for the opening of this office, it made changes to its distribution channels in China, including consolidating its distributor network, which has led to some disruption in the business.
Shares in Abcam were trading down 14% at 413.75 pence Tuesday.
By Hana Stewart-Smith; [email protected]; @HanaSSAllNews
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