June 1 (SeeNews) - Bulgarian drug maker Sopharma [BUL:3JR] said on Monday that its consolidated net profit, excluding minority interest, fell to 10.8 million levs ($6.1 million/5.5 million euro) in the first quarter of 2020 from 15.4 million levs in the same period of last year, hurt by higher cost of goods sold.
Sopharma's operating expenses rose to 359.4 million levs in the review period from 301.7 million levs a year earlier, mostly due to a 46 million levs increase in cost of goods sold, Sopharma said in an interim financial statement.
The company's operating revenue grew to 369.7 million levs in the January-March period of the year from 318.4 million levs in the comparable period of 2019,
Sales on foreign markets increased 12%, while domestic sales added 19%.
Sopharma and its subsidiaries have 12 production facilities with a portfolio of over 200 products. The group employed 5,210 people at the end of March, up from 5,163 in 2019.
As at 14:30 CET on Monday, Sopharma shares traded 1.01% higher at 3.01 levs on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)