Rhone-Poulenc (India) has posted a 152 per cent jump in its first-quarter net profit to Rs 8.15 crore from Rs 3.23 crore in the corresponding period last year. Among other pharma scrips, German Remedies and Glaxo have shot up by 35 per cent and 16 per cent, respectively. German Remedies has been rising on expectations of excellent results an the scrip has zoomed from Rs 309 to Rs 419. Knoll Pharma, trading cum-bonus after a 1:1 bonus, has firmed up from Rs 675 to Rs 730. Pfizer has gaind almost Rs 100 to Rs 592 in the past few weeks.

In the FMCG segment, Britannia Industries has shot up on bonus hopes to an all-time high of Rs 650. After reporting an excellent performance for 1997-98, themarket is agog with rumours that the company will reward its shareholders by capitalising its reserves. In the past few weeks, the company's scrip has defied market nervousness and moved against the wave.

Britannia Industries recorded a 13 per cent increase in net sales to Rs 847.8 crore for the year ended March 31, 1998, against Rs 752.3 crore in the previous year.

Net profit jumped by 62 per cent to Rs 28.9 crore from Rs 17.9 crore.The stocks of Cadbury and Nestle have also appreciated by Rs 79 and Rs 94, respectively, in the past few sessions ahead of their results. Smithkline Beecham Consumer Healthcare has shot up above its cum-bonus price of Rs 440 on the back of encouraging performance.

Smithkline Beecham Consumer Healthcare, the 40 per cent subsidiary of Beecham Plc, reported a 30 per cent jump in net profit to Rs 32.6 crore up from Rs 25.16 crore. Turnover was higher at Rs 311.4 crore from Rs 266.6 crore, up 17 per cent.

SmithKline Pharma bucks trend

The performance of Beechamgroup's 40 per cent subsidiary, Smithkline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, has been an aberation. The company has reported a slower growth of 11.62 per cent in net profit. Smithkline's scrip was on a roller-coaster ride on Friday, the day company announced its half-yearly results.

After opening the day at Rs 374, the scrip shot up ot an ex-bonus high of Rs 405 on NSE. But heavy selling in mid-session, send the scrip tumbling down to Rs 351. On BSE, the scrip closed at Rs 351 aginst the previous close of Rs 381 with a huge trading volume of over 87,000 shares. The market was dissapointed with the lower than expected growth in net profit by 11.62 per cent to Rs 14.61 crore. The company's turnover, however, grew by 25.4 per cent to Rs 154.53 crore.