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JOHANNESBURG, Sept 11 (Reuters) - South Africa's AspenPharmacare said on Wednesday its full-year earningsrose by a quarter, helped by strong performance at home andoverseas, and it was planning a push into Russia.
Aspen, Africa's largest maker of generic drugs, said dilutedheadline earnings totalled 786.9 cents per share, up from 626.9cents a year earlier.
Headline earnings, the main measure of profit in SouthAfrica, exclude certain one-time items.
Revenue rose by 27 percent to 19.3 billion rand ($1.9billion).
The company, which is 19 percent owned by Britain'sGlaxoSmithKline, has been on an aggressive acquisitiontrail this year that has broadened its offering of medicines infast-growing regions such as Latin America and southeast Asia.
It said in June it would acquire a drugs and manufacturingbusiness from U.S. firm Merck in a $1 billion deal tobolster its presence in Europe, Latin America and Asia.
It is also in talks to buy thrombosis drugs and a Frenchfactory from GlaxoSmithKline, in another deal likely to be worth$1 billion.
The completion of these deals will expand its portfolio ofglobal brands, the company said in a statement.
"This will enable Aspen to establish its own business unitsin Russia, other former Soviet republics and across Europe aswell as extending its influence in Latin America and Asia," itsaid.
Shares of Aspen were up 2.5 percent at 250.20 rand at 11GMT, outperforming a slight decline in Johannesburg's All-shareindex.
