Schering AG Sales And Profits Surge

German drugmaker Schering AG reported a 12% rise in both sales and net profit for 1994, at 4.68 billion Deutschemarks ($3.06 billion) and 285 million marks ($186.1 million) respectively; these figures exceeded the company's own targets. Domestic turnover, amounting to 699 million marks, was down by 1% but overseas sales improved 15% to 3.99 billion marks.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs say the results are in line with their expectations, but strongly believe that the underlying performance was significantly better. The stock remains firmly on their European Priority and Recommended Lists. Analysts at Paribas Capital Markets also favor Schering, especially among its European peers, and say they expect the shares to outperform the German market by 14% over the next 12 months.

Negative Currency Impact The main generator behind the 15% rise in foreign turnover, which now accounts for 85% of the total, was the company's Betaseron (interferon beta; see also page 5), sold only in the USA. Given the high exposure to non-domestic markets, Schering said the influence of currency exchange rates on the development of sales increased in the past 12 months; the dampening effect resulting from the lower US dollar as well as that of some European currencies could not be balanced out by the higher value of the yen. The growth in sales adjusted for currency influences would have been percentage points higher, it noted.