Fidson Healthcare Plc, Mecure Industries Plc and Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc operate within the pharmaceutical sector, but their performance and investment potential in 2025 differ significantly.
On market performance, which is very important to investors, as of close of trading in November, Fidson offered the highest capital gain with a share price YtD gain of 158% and dividend yield of 2.43%
Neimeth recorded a YtD gain of 136%, while Mecure, which is the most capitalized stock among the three, stood at 98.28%.
So, in terms of market capitalization, Mecure leads, while in terms of shareholders’ return, Fidson leads
Let us look at how they performed financially.
In the first nine months of 2025, each company showed strong revenue growth, although at different rates:
Verdict: MeCure outperforms the others in terms of revenue growth, while Fidson dominates in absolute revenue.
Despite strong revenue growth, managing costs differs.
All three companies performed well in terms of gross profit margins, which indicates efficient production processes.
However, overhead costs (admin, marketing), finance costs (borrowings), and foreign exchange losses are the factors that eat into profits.
After overhead and finance costs, Fidson is left with N8.60 of every N100 in net profit. This is the highest among the companies, but there’s room for improvement by better managing overhead and finance costs.
After covering overhead and a 137% rise in finance costs, MeCure is left with N7.40 of every N100 in net profit.
Although the operating margin (22%) is solid, the rise in finance costs impacted profitability.
However, after covering overheads and a 198% rise in finance costs, Neimeth is left with N6.80 out of every N100 as net profit.
Strong production efficiency is overshadowed by rising finance costs.
Verdict: Fidson leads in profitability, but MeCure’s strong growth suggests potential improvement. Neimeth needs to manage finance costs more effectively.
Verdict: Fidson leads in profitability, but MeCure’s strong growth suggests potential improvement. Neimeth needs to manage finance costs more effectively.
In 9M 2025, Fidson led in profitability with a net profit of N7.97 billion, a 131.75% increase from the previous year. This growth was driven by both strong revenue and a N1 billion drop in foreign exchange losses.
MeCure experienced the highest growth in profits, with a net profit of N4.46 billion, a 186.14% increase compared to 9M 2024.
Neimeth, with the lowest profit at N340 million, showed a modest 9.43% increase. This reflects rising finance costs and Neimeth’s smaller scale compared to Fidson and MeCure.
Verdict: Fidson leads in profitability, but MeCure’s strong growth shows potential for future improvement. Neimeth needs to improve efficiency and manage costs.
The debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45 indicates moderate leverage, showing Fidson is using debt but not excessively.
However, it is managing to cover its interest expenses as reflected in its interest coverage ratio.
The debt-to-equity ratio of 2.6x indicates relatively high leverage.
Verdict: Fidson wins here, as they manage their debt more conservatively, striking a better balance between growth and financial risk.
The 2024 dividend was paid on August 1, 2025, and the stock currently offers a dividend yield of 2.50%.
MeCure offers a dividend yield of 0.50%, which is modest compared to Fidson.
This suggests a less consistent dividend policy, which may be less appealing for income-seeking investors.
Verdict: Fidson is the leader in terms of dividend rewards, offering a higher and more yield – 2.50%.
The stock is priced at 13 times its operating profit, 22 times its earnings, and 6 times its book value, suggesting that investors are expecting continued growth.
The stock is priced at a premium relative to its book value, but strong earnings growth and consistent dividend payments make it a potentially attractive option for investors seeking steady performance.
However, with negative earnings and no current profitability, it’s a risky investment one that could either pay off big or disappoint if expectations aren’t met.
Fidson leads in shareholder return, profitability, and dividend rewards
MeCure has the highest growth potential, with strong revenue growth and improving profitability.
Neimeth is the least profitable and most highly leveraged.