Gilead’s Irish unit pays out dividends of €2.8bn over two years

The main Irish unit of HIV and hepatitis C drug specialist Gilead paid out dividends totalling $3.05 billion (€2.77 billion) over the past two years.

New accounts show that Cork-based Gilead Sciences Ireland UC (GSIUC) last year paid out a dividend of $1.65 billion to immediate parent, Gilead Biopharmaceutics US LLC. This followed a dividend payout of $1.4 billion in 2021.

The accounts also disclose that GSIUC’s corporation tax bill for 2021 was $131.1 million. This comprised a 2021 corporation tax charge of $58.46 million and an additional $129.09 million “corporation tax adjustment to prior periods”, offset by a deferred tax of $56.45 million.

A note concerning the $129.09 million adjustment states that “the company has been engaging collaboratively with tax authorities in relation to certain issues that are complex and may take time to resolve”. The note states that the $129.09 million “includes amounts in relation to these matters”.

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The accounts show that 2021 was a bumper year for the expansion of the business as GSUIC’s revenues surged by 30 per cent, or $1.68 billion, to $7.28 billion.

The directors state that this was primarily due to sales of Veklury, Gilead’s treatment for hospitalised patients with Covid-19.

The drug achieved public notice when it was one of the medications administered to Donald Trump when he was US president and contracted Covid-19.

Globally, Gilead’s sales of Veklury in 2021 totalled $5.56 billion.

Gilead mainly produces drugs to combat HIV and hepatitis C. In 2021, GSIUC returned to operating profit of $160.29 million, following an operating loss of $184.4 million in 2020.

However, the business recorded a pretax loss of $575.1 million due to a $716.89 million impairment in financial assets. This loss was 69 per cent down on the pretax loss of $1.8 billion in 2020.

The firm recorded a post-tax loss of $706.2 million in 2021 after incurring the corporation tax charge of $131.1 million.

Seven directors served during the year, with directors’ remuneration increasing by 65 per cent to $4.94 million. This comprised $2.6 million in emoluments, $2.23 million in long-term incentive schemes, and pension contributions of $100,000.

[ Gilead gets approval for €45m expansion of Carrigtwohill site ]

Numbers at the Cork unit increased by 36 from 498 to 534. Staff costs rose from $73.2 million to $89.75 million, including share-based payments of just under $11 million.

At the end of 2021, GSIUC had accumulated profits of $17.4 billion. The company’s cash funds more than halved from $1 billion to $462 million.

Earlier this month The Irish Times reported that Gilead had secured planning permission for a €45 million expansion at its Carrigtwohill manufacturing base. This is designed to deliver significant additional warehousing and storage capacity at a site that produces 30 per cent of its global supply of oral drugs for 100 markets.

Gilead said the development would ensure the Cork site “continues to play a central master distributor role in the company’s supply chain”.