ShareHope Medicine Co Ltd (盛弘醫藥) yesterday said that its board has approved plans to acquire a local retail drug store chain from Hong Kong-headquartered Zuellig Pharma Holdings Pte Ltd in a move that would make the company one of Taiwan’s biggest pharmacy operators.
The company, a medical human resources and logistics service provider, said that it would acquire YesChain (躍獅連鎖藥局), a local drug store chain with 87 outlets, in a NT$170 million (US$5.68 million) acquisition.
Following the deal, ShareHope would control 104 drug stores, the Taoyuan-based company said in a statement.
ShareHope also plans to strengthen ties with Zuellig Pharma, a major regional medical supplier, it said, adding that it aims to combine the Hong Kong company’s bargaining power with its own cloud-based procurement platform to tap into Taiwan’s growing demand for medicine and healthcare products.
Zuellig Pharma operates in 16 Asian markets and is a leader in terms of logistics and information systems, and is a supplier to 400 hospitals and 20,000 clinics in Taiwan, ShareHope said, noting that YesChain’s annual revenue has been averaging about NT$800 million.
ShareHope chairman Yang Hong-ren (楊弘仁) said that the company wants to provide customized services to its customers by linking its patient information database and logistics systems to redefine its network of community pharmacies.
“We want to tap into rising demand for preventative care from Taiwan’s aging population,” Yang said.
There are about 7,800 pharmacies in Taiwan producing annual sales of about NT$120 billion, Yang said, adding that major drug store chains have only claimed 19 percent of the market, compared to 66 percent and 55 percent in the US and Japan respectively.
The company reported that its sales in the first four months rose 7.1 percent annually to NT$880 million.
Net income in the first quarter came to NT$13.75 million this year, down 56.67 percent annually, or earnings per share of NT$0.17, which the company attributed to higher costs from participating in bids for medical testing contracts.
The company’s shares yesterday closed 2.49 percent higher at NT$35 in Taipei trading. They have fallen 5.53 percent so far this year.
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