AFT Pharmaceuticals founder and chief executive Hartley Atkinson says his company will move into the black in 2019, after failing to meet a tentative 2018 target.
The Auckland-based pharmaceutical producer develops, markets and distributes more than 100 products but is best known for the painkiller, Maxigesic, which is sold in 10 countries.
AFT was founded in 1997 and raised $33.2 million in its initial public offering on the NZX in late 2015.
Atkinson owns 75% of the company, which he started with his wife Marree in his garage 20 years ago, meaning his stake is worth approximately $175 million.
It declared a total operating loss of $12.7 million in its full-year result for the year ended March 31, 2018, compared with a loss of $18.4m the year earlier.
AFT says it will break even in the 2019 financial year, after the company was unable to secure a significant licensing agreement to meet its 2018 target of profitability.
Atkinson says securing one of several potential deals means the target is still a "wild card."
The company is finding more success in Australia, which represents 61% of its operating revenue, while New Zealand revenues are in decline.
“We’re more of an Australian company presently and we’re getting good growth in the Australian market," Atkinson says.
Marree is on AFT’s board and is head of staff. He has four children.
Dr Atkinson is a lifetime patron of the Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine Foundation in Australasia, which conducts research to improve outcomes for people in pain.
He has sponsored his former high school, Westlake Boys High School, and was told by the headmaster it was the largest private donation to the school yet. The money went to new gymnasium and classroom facilities.
In his spare time, he paddle boards near his $6.7 million dollar home in the beachside suburb of Takapuna.
Photo: Stuff