Medical Developments International reported higher profitability and stronger cash generation, with accelerating demand for Penthrox in Australia and Europe supporting a more positive outlook for the emergency pain relief specialist.
The company reported net profit after tax of $0.6 million for the year to 30 June 2026, up from $0.1 million in the previous year. Earnings improved to $0.2 million, reversing a $48,000 loss in the prior corresponding period, while free cash flow rose $5.8 million to $4.2 million.
Group revenue increased 9 per cent to $42.6 million, reflecting a 12 per cent lift in Pain Management revenue that more than offset a 15 per cent decline in the Respiratory business.
The result places Penthrox at the centre of the company’s growth strategy, with volumes in the Australian hospital segment increasing 28 per cent over the year and European in-market demand rising 18 per cent.
Chief executive Brent MacGregor said the company had delivered solid financial performance alongside stronger cash flow, driven by improving Penthrox volumes across regions and progress on a series of clinical and regulatory initiatives.
He said the company’s respiratory business continued to face soft demand, although pricing actions and lower costs supported a modest improvement in segment earnings.
In Australia, Penthrox revenue rose 16 per cent, supported by a 9 per cent increase in total volumes and higher pricing. The company increased prices in July 2025 for customers representing around one quarter of Penthrox volume that had not received an increase in the preceding year. Medical Developments said the move added about $1 million to 2026 earnings.
The company is also seeking to deepen Penthrox adoption in hospital emergency departments, where it says the inhaled non opioid analgesic is becoming more widely recognised as an acute pain management option.
A health economic analysis published in Emergency Medicine Australasia found that use of Penthrox in hospital emergency departments could deliver department-wide cost and operational savings. Medical Developments said the findings further differentiated the product from standard care and could help support future uptake.
Access also broadened in Australia after the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme added nurse practitioners to the Penthrox Prescriber Bag criteria in October 2025.
The strongest strategic development came in Europe, where Penthrox received approval for a paediatric indication in the United Kingdom and all European Union member states. The product can now be used in children aged six years and over in those markets, expanding the company’s potential addressable market.
MacGregor said the approval was an important milestone and expected it to generate benefits in future reporting periods. The MAGPIE paediatric study was also published in the journal Injury during the year.
European partner sales benefited both from underlying demand growth and higher inventory held by partners. The transition of supply to the company’s French partner from 1 July 2025 also contributed to stronger volumes, although transfer prices into France and Switzerland were lower after the shift to partner supply arrangements.
Revenue from Rest of World markets rose 66 per cent, largely reflecting the timing of inventory stocking by distribution partners. That benefit is not expected to recur in FY27.
The Respiratory segment remained the key point of weakness. Higher prices in the United States were insufficient to offset lower sales volumes amid softer demand, resulting in a 15 per cent fall in respiratory revenue.
The company ended the year with $21.4 million in cash and said its improved free cash flow reflected stronger cash earnings, lower working capital and reduced capital expenditure.
For the 2027 financial year, the company expects further growth in market demand for Penthrox, supported by the European paediatric indication and the recently published health economic data. It expects respiratory demand to stabilise, but has warned that earnings will be affected by about $1 million in amortisation related to capitalised registration costs for the European paediatric indication.
The company also flagged uncertainty around the potential effects of Middle East supply chain disruption and US tariffs.
