Revenue edged up 2% to HUF 419.7 bln. The direct cost of sales dropped 19% to HUF 127.7 bln, lifting gross profit 14% to HUF 292 bln.

Richter booked a net financial gain of HUF 24.2 bln for H1, after a HUF 24.9 bln financial loss in the base period.

Earnings per share came to HUF 756 for the period.

“Profitability improved across the business and we remain well on track to meet our full-year ambitions and targets,” CEO Gábor Orbán said.

First-half pharmaceutical sales climbed 14% to HUF 413.4 bln. Turnover of Richter’s antipsychotic cariprazine rose 23% to HUF 110.1 bln, making it the company’s best-selling product. Turnover of oral contraceptives increased 10% to HUF 80.3 bln. Sales of its Evra transdermal contraceptive patch climbed 20% to HUF 17.6 bln.

Richter had retained earnings of HUF 1.119 tln at the end of June, its balance sheet shows.

Guidance Affirmed

At a press conference after the publication of the report, Orbán confirmed earlier guidance and pointed to the lack of “shocks or turbulence”. He put full-year revenue of pharmaceuticals production at EUR 2.15 bln-2.25 bln.

Turnover of Richter’s pharmaceutical business was close to EUR 1.1 bln in the first half, the report shows.

Orbán said revenue growth had been “balanced” and “broad-based” over various regions. The exception was Russia, where growth was flat because of earlier stockbuilding, he added.

In the women’s healthcare segment, growth was “robust” in countries in Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region, while climbing in the double digits in Western Europe, too, he said.