South African pharmaceutical giant kisses R700 million goodbye

Aspen Pharmacare is hopeful that taking some pain in the first half of its 2026 financial year will set it up for a far stronger second half.

The first six months of Aspen’s financial year were marked by a high comparative base, once-off restructuring costs of nearly R695 million, and the resolution of a contractual dispute.

Aspen released its results for the six months through December 2025 on Tuesday, 3 March 2026.

These results revealed that Aspen’s revenue declined by 4% to R21.09 billion, while its profit plunged by 38% to R1.47 billion.

The company’s earnings per share from continuing operations nearly halved, falling by 46% to 194.8 cents per share.

Aspen explained that these first-half results were influenced by a number of factors, and despite some financial hits, its operational performance remained strong.

The company’s most important segment, Commercial Pharmaceuticals, delivered revenue growth of 4%, supported by strong demand for weight-loss drug Mounjaro in South Africa.

In addition, this segment benefited from an improved profit contribution from Aspen’s reshaped business in China

This helped to boost the segment’s normalised EBITDA to R4.85 billion, an 11% increase from the first half of its 2025 financial year.

However, these positives were slightly offset by a stronger rand against Aspen’s major trading currencies over the six-month period.

In contrast, Aspen’s Manufacturing segment achieved a normalised EBITDA of R208 million, down 85% from the comparative period.

This segment saw a slight R500 million boost from the settlement proceeds following Aspen’s contractual dispute that was settled in October 2025.

However, this was not enough to offset the high comparative base that the mRNA Manufacturing contract, the subject of the dispute that has now been ended, created in the 2025 financial year.

In addition, Aspen’s Manufacturing segment faced once-off restructuring costs of R695 million relating to the company’s loss-making sterile finished dose form manufacturing facilities in South Africa and France.

However, Aspen explained that the reshaping of these facilities is progressing well, with the company set to reap the rewards of cost reductions in the second half of the year.

Looking forward, Aspen expects the second half of the 2026 financial year to be significantly stronger, with the company set to meet guidance targets.