German takeover boosts Omega’s sales

Medical testing kit maker Omega Diagnostics expects its full-year sales to have risen by more than 40 per cent after the Alva-based firm bought a German peer.

In its pre-close trading update, Omega said it is forecasting revenues of £11.1 million for the year to 31 March, compared with £7.9m during the previous 12 months.

Stripping out the effect of buying Allergopharma’s in-vitro diagnostics business, the Scottish firm said underlying sales were 5 per cent higher year-on-year.

Omega confirmed that pre-tax profits would be in-line with market expectations, with analysts at house broker Seymour Pierce pencilling in a surplus of £1m.

Andrew Shepherd, Omega’s chief executive, said: “We are very pleased with the progress Omega has made and the overall business is performing strongly.

“We are also looking forward to significant opportunities presented by direct access into the Indian market, the launch of a range of allergy tests onto the automated IDS-iSYS platform and new prospects that exist that could transform the performance within our infectious disease portfolio.”