BARCELONA (Reuters) – Spanish drugmaker Grifols reported on Wednesday a net profit of 157 million euros ($165.02 million) for 2024 on revenues of 7.21 billion euros, up 10.2% from a year earlier and above its target for 7% sales growth.
Analysts polled by LSEG expected revenues of 7.14 billion during the period.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose nearly 22% to 1.78 billion euros, the maker of human plasma-based medicines said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Grifols’ leverage ratio dropped to 5.6 times the EBITDA at the end of last year from 8.5 times in 2023 as it sought to improve its indebtedness levels following allegations of improper accounting.
Its net financial debt fell by around 1.3 billion euros year-on-year to 9.2 billion euros in 2024.
The company lost more than 30% of its market value last year, when Gotham City Research, a short-seller fund, released multiple reports accusing Grifols of overstating earnings and understating debt, which Grifols denies. It has sued the fund.
In November, an investigating magistrate at Spain’s High Court opened a probe into Gotham’s actions over the possible violation of market and consumer protection laws. That month, Canadian fund Brookfield dropped its plan to take over Grifols due to a disagreement over the pharmaceutical company’s value.
Spain’s stock market regulator CNMV has earlier opened disciplinary proceedings against Gotham for alleged market manipulation of Grifols shares, but also against the pharmaceutical group for some faulty financial reporting.
($1 = 0.9514 euros)
(Reporting by Andrei Khalip and Joan Faus)
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