Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals in the thick of the action

Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals rose 10.07% to Rs 227.30 at 10:02 IST on BSE after Solrex Pharmaceutical increased its stake in the company by 3.34% through market purchases of 21.9 lakh shares on Monday, 7 April 2008.

The scrip had touched a high of Rs 229.95 and a low of Rs 210.30 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 328 on 17 January 2008 and a 52-week low of Rs 106.50 on 24 March 2008.

The small-cap drug maker has an equity capital of Rs 65.85 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

At the current price of Rs 227.30, the scrip trades at a PE multiple of 6.91, based on Q3 December 2007 annualised EPS of Rs 32.88.

The net profit of Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals rose 91.1% to Rs 54.12 crore on 39.4% rise in sales to Rs 332.69 crore in Q3 December 2007 over Q3 December 2006.

With these purchases, Solrex's stake in the company has increased to 11.4%. It held 8.06% stake in Orchid after market purchases on 3 April 2008. Solrex Pharmaceutical reportedly belongs to the Ranbaxy Group.

Earlier on 17 March 2008, the Orchid Chemicals stock had tanked 39.09% after the Orchid management offloaded nearly 20.20 lakh shares or, 7% in the price range of Rs 131 - Rs 133.86 due to margin calls.

The company is engaged in manufacturing and selling pharmaceuticals ingredients and finished dosage forms. It focuses on the cephalosporin range of antibiotics. The company exports to Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East, South and Central America, North America and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Countries.