Drug major Cipla Ltd has announced healthy performance during the fourth quarter ended March 2004. Its net profit has taken a quantum jump of 118 per cent to Rs 101.74 crore from Rs 46.73 crore in the corresponding period of last year. Its net sales moved up by 54.4 per cent to Rs 599.38 crore during the fourth quarter from Rs 388.15 crore in the similar period of last year.

Despite higher depreciation and interest charges, the company pushed its bottomline. Cipla’s earning per share worked out Rs 16.96 as compared to Rs 7.79 in the last period. With the better financial performance, the share price moved up by Rs 45 to Rs 1295 on the BSE. The promoters are holding nearly 41 per cent of the equity and recently the Board okayed stock split from Rs 10 to Rs 2.

The company achieved one milestone in respect of sales during the year ended March 2004 and its sales crossed the Rs 2000-crore mark and touched to Rs 2060 crore as against Rs 1573 crore in the previous year. Its sales went up by 31 per cent. Similarly, its other income also increased to Rs 34.51 crore from Rs 26.22 crore.

The operating profit before interest, depreciation and taxation increased to Rs 450.51 crore during the year ended March 2004 from Rs 342.56 crore, registering a growth of 31.5 per cent. Interest charges increased to Rs 10.24 crore from Rs 1.72 crore and depreciation provision went up to 36.50 crore from Rs 28.35 crore. Thus rise in interest and depreciation has put some pressure on bottomline, which increased by 26.7 per cent to Rs 313.77 crore from Rs 247.74 crore. The annualised earning per share reached at Rs 52.32 from Rs 41.31.

Meanwhile, the company has challenged the inclusion of the drugs – salbutamol, theophyline, ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin within the ambit of price control. The government had sent notices to the company demanding an aggregate of Rs 180.37 crore in respect of the said drugs. The company has not provided any amount in the account as legal proceedings are at various stages in the courts.