Aspen Pharmacare expects improved performance in midst of Covid-19 pandemic

Aspen Pharmacare [JSE:APN] says it expects to report an increase in revenue growth of between 8% and 10% when it publishes its annual results next month.

The drug manufacturer said in a trading statement on Thursday that it saw an increase in demand for its products used in the clinical management of Covid-19, and from consumers stockpiling everyday healthcare items and filling their prescriptions in advance during the peak period of the pandemic.

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The positive trends were offset by a decline in demand when medicine stock levels normalised, people delaying their elective surgeries and a reduced infection rate of non-Covid-19 communicable diseases as a result of social distancing.

Aspen said it expects its headline earnings per share from continuing operations to grow by 7% to 11%. The company has also managed to decrease its debt from R37.9 billion to R35.2 billion.