Fidson Healthcare Plc delivered a significantly stronger financial performance for the year ended December 31, 2025, which was a record-breaking year for the national drug maker.
Revenue growth has accelerated over the past few years, from N53.1 billion in 2023 to N84.2 billion in 2024, before surging to N191.1 billion in 2025, reflecting higher sales volumes across its ethical drugs, over-the-counter medicines, and consumer healthcare segments. The performance comes at a time when manufacturers are grappling with high inflation, FX constraints, and elevated borrowing costs.
Profit after tax for the year stood at N9.3 billion, up from N5.8 billion in 2024, translating into an increase in earnings per share to 388 kobo from 252 kobo. The current share price on NGX is N68.00 as of January 29, 2026.
Gross profit increased from N35.1 billion in 2024 to N49.1 billion in 2025, despite higher costs for imported inputs, energy, and logistics. Operating profit climbed to N20.9 billion, compared with N13.1 billion in the prior year. Administrative expenses increased to N13.6 billion, while selling and distribution costs rose to N10.0 billion, reflecting wider distribution reach and increased market activity.
Finance costs remained a snag. It went from N5.5 billion in 2024 to N7.1 billion largely due to high interest rates in the domestic market. However, foreign exchange losses were relatively contained during the year, helping to cushion the impact of higher borrowing costs.
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The drug maker saw a notable improvement in cash generation. Net cash from operating activities amounted to N13.4 billion, a sharp turnaround from a N505 million outflow in the prior year. The improvement was driven by stronger profitability and better working capital management, including improved collections and inventory discipline.
Fidson also took a major leap in expanding its footprint. Its N7.8 billion spend on property, plant, and equipment was more than double the N3.7 billion invested in 2024. The capital expenditure aligns with the company’s strategy to deepen local manufacturing and reduce exposure to imported liquidity management.
The company ended the year with cash and bank balances of N4.7 billion, up from N3.6 billion at the start of the year. Despite the investment outlay, this points to improved liquidity management. On the balance sheet, total assets rose to N80.4 billion from N73.5 billion, supported by increased fixed assets. Higher inventories slightly rose from N24.2 billion to N26.3 billion to support growing sales volumes.
Shareholders’ equity strengthened to N30.8 billion, from N23.7 billion, driven by retained earnings of N24.7 billion. Total liabilities remained broadly flat at N49.7 billion compared to the previous year when it was N49.8 billion, reflecting a reduction in long-term borrowings offset by higher short-term financing.
The company also increased dividends paid to shareholders to N2.3 billion, from N1.4 billion, as confidence in earnings sustainability rose despite ongoing economic uncertainty. The company has been the 83rd most traded stock for the past three months (Oct 30, 2025 – Jan 29, 2026), trading a total volume of 63.5 million shares—in 30,885 deals—valued at NGN 3.44 billion over the period, with an average of 1.01 million traded shares per session. The 51st most valuable stock on the Nigerian Exchange, Fidson has a market capitalisation of N156 billion.
Fidson’s performance reflects broader trends in Nigeria’s pharmaceutical sector. Filling the gap left by such multinationals like GlaxoSmithLine (GSK), rising healthcare demand, and policy support for local manufacturing are reshaping the industry.
