A large, long-listed medicine maker with five years of rising sales and a dependable, growing cash dividend — but heavy borrowings and their interest cost have started to hold its profit back.

The ACME Laboratories Limited is a medicine (pharmaceutical) maker that has been listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange since 2016. It sits in the "Pharmaceuticals & Chemicals" sector and trades in the exchange's top "A" category. In the year to June 2025 it sold about 3,594 crore taka worth of products, making it one of the larger drug makers on the market.

It is a big company by local standards, with about 21.2 crore shares in issue, each with a face value of 10 taka, and reserves (past profits kept in the business) of roughly 1,950 crore taka. Its sales have grown steadily — from about 2,077 crore taka in 2021 to about 3,594 crore in 2025.

It is a family-anchored business: the founding Sinha family still holds a large block of shares. In May 2026 its long-serving Managing Director passed away, and his shares passed to his children — a daughter who is the Deputy Managing Director and a son who is a Director — so the next generation of the family is now stepping into the lead.

ACME's business is easy to understand: it makes and sells medicines and related health products. Its income depends on the volume it sells, so more production and a wider product range translate into higher sales. Because medicine is bought all year round, demand is steady and repeatable rather than one-off.

To grow, the company has been investing heavily in its manufacturing capacity. It spent about 526 crore taka on new plant and equipment in 2023, about 412 crore in 2024 and about 308 crore in 2025 — years of building meant to lift future output.

That effort shows up in the numbers: sales have risen for five years straight, from about 2,077 crore taka in 2021 to about 3,594 crore in 2025, a gain of roughly 73%.

Over five years ACME's profit has grown well. Net profit rose from about 156.9 crore taka in 2021 to about 242.9 crore in 2025 — a gain of roughly 55% — and profit per share climbed the same way, from about 7.42 taka to about 11.48 taka. Sales grew even faster, up about 73% over the period.

There is a catch in the most recent year, though. Sales still rose — from about 3,193 crore taka in 2024 to about 3,594 crore in 2025 — but net profit actually slipped a little, from about 245.6 crore to about 242.9 crore, and profit per share edged down from 11.61 to 11.48 taka. In short, the company sold more but kept slightly less, a sign that costs are rising faster than sales.

On turning sales into profit, it keeps a fairly thin slice. In 2025 it made about 350 crore taka of operating profit on about 3,594 crore of sales; after the interest on its borrowings and tax, the final net profit was about 242.9 crore. That wide gap between operating and final profit — and the fact that profit stopped growing — points straight to the rising cost of its debt.

On the strong side, the company generates healthy cash and stands on a growing base of its own money. Shareholders' equity has grown from about 2,011 crore taka in 2021 to about 2,674 crore in 2025, alongside retained reserves of roughly 1,950 crore. Its operating cash flow reached about 318.3 crore taka in 2025 — its best in five years — and it held about 192.7 crore of cash.

The weaker side is debt. Its total borrowings stand at about 2,481 crore taka — nearly as much as its own capital of about 2,674 crore. Much of that was taken on to fund the big factory-expansion years, and the interest bill on it is now heavy enough that, even with sales rising, the final profit stopped growing in the latest year.

So the read is: the company earns real cash and has solid reserves, but it is not lightly financed. Its debt and the cost of servicing it are the biggest weight on profit and the part of its financial health that deserves the closest watching.

ACME is a dependable dividend payer. Its cash dividend has risen almost every year — 25% of face value in 2021, then 30%, 33%, and 35% in both 2024 and 2025. On the 10-taka face value, the latest 35% works out to about 3.5 taka per share, all in cash (no bonus shares).

The payout looks safe. Out of the roughly 11.48 taka the company earned per share in 2025, it paid about 3.5 taka as dividend — less than a third of its profit — leaving the rest inside the business to reinvest and to cushion the payout in a softer year.

Its most recent dividend — 35% cash for the 2025 financial year — was declared on 28 October 2025 with a record date of 18 November 2025. The one soft spot is that the dividend, like profit, held flat at 35% in the latest year rather than rising again. (Today's dividend yield — the dividend measured against the current price — changes with the price, so it is shown live beside this report, not here.)

ACME's main advantage is size and staying power. With about 3,594 crore taka of yearly sales and a manufacturing base built up over many years, it is one of the larger medicine makers on the exchange, with a long record of profits and dividends. A defensive product — medicine — and a committed founding family (holding about 40% of the shares) add to its stability, and the credit agency CRISL rated it "AA" long-term with a stable outlook in late 2025.

But it is not the highest-quality franchise in its field. Among the sector peers in this report, recent yearly earnings growth ranges widely — from over 20% at Navana Pharmaceuticals down to a slight dip at ACME itself. Its profit margin is fairly thin, too: out of about 3,594 crore of sales it keeps only about 350 crore as operating profit. Brand-only multinationals such as Marico Bangladesh and Reckitt Benckiser earn far higher returns on the money shareholders put in, because they run lighter, brand-led businesses; ACME is a heavier manufacturer that owns big factories and carries debt, so its returns look more ordinary.

So its edge is real but moderate: it competes on scale and reliability as a high-volume manufacturer, not by owning a dominant, high-margin brand. It is a solid, established player in a competitive field — not a runaway leader.

• Steady long-term growth. Sales rose about 73% and profit about 55% over five years (2021–2025), with profit per share up to about 11.48 taka — a sign of real, lasting demand for its medicines.
• A dependable, well-covered dividend. The cash dividend has climbed from 25% to 35% of face value (about 3.5 taka per share) and uses less than a third of profit, so it is comfortably covered.
• Strong cash generation and reserves. Operating cash flow reached about 318.3 crore taka in 2025 — its best in five years — on top of roughly 1,950 crore taka of reserves built up over the years.
• Quality standing and aligned owners. The credit agency CRISL rated it "AA" long-term with a stable outlook, and the founding family still holds about 40% of the shares — their interests sit with other shareholders.
• A defensive, essential industry. Medicine is bought in good times and bad, so demand stays steady — which has shown up in five straight years of rising sales.

• Profit growth has stalled. Even though sales rose, the latest year's net profit (about 242.9 crore taka) slipped below the year before (about 245.6 crore) — costs are outrunning sales.
• Meaningful debt and heavy interest cost. Its borrowings (about 2,481 crore taka) are nearly as large as its own capital (about 2,674 crore), and the interest bill on that debt is the main reason profit stopped growing.
• Thinner margins and returns than the leaders. It keeps only about 350 crore taka of operating profit on about 3,594 crore of sales, and earns lower returns on capital than sector standouts like Marico, Reckitt Benckiser and Square Pharmaceuticals.
• Big spending still has to pay off. Years of heavy factory investment (about 526 crore taka in 2023 and 412 crore in 2024) must now lift profit, not just sales — that is execution risk.
• Leadership transition. The long-serving Managing Director passed away in May 2026 and the next generation of the family has taken over his stake — continuity at the top is a question to watch.

ACME Laboratories is the kind of steady, established business that patient, income-minded and long-term investors tend to like: five years of rising sales, a dependable and well-covered cash dividend, healthy cash generation and a defensive product you can hold through ups and downs.

The honest caveat is debt. Sales keep rising, but profit stopped growing in the latest year as borrowings — nearly as large as the company's own capital — and their interest cost took a bigger bite. The company has spent heavily to expand; the real test now is whether it can turn that investment and its growing sales back into growing profit.

If you want fast growth or a high-margin market leader, this is not that. If you want a steady, dividend-paying stake in an essential industry and are willing to keep an eye on the debt story, ACME fits the profile. Whether today's price is a good entry is a separate question — see the live value estimate beside this report — and remember this is educational information, not a recommendation to buy or sell.