Egyptian businesswoman Hend El-Sherbini suffers $23-million blow to her stake in IDH

Egyptian multimillionaire businesswoman Hend El-Sherbini has seen the market value of her stake in Integrated Diagnostics Holdings (IDH), a leading diagnostic service provider, fall by $23 million since the start of the year.

IDH is one of the Middle East and Africa’s leading consumer healthcare groups.

With more than 1,400 international-standard diagnostic tests, it operates through a branch network of 483 labs in four countries, making it Egypt’s largest diagnostic service provider.

El-Sherbini, a prominent Egyptian businesswoman who was instrumental in the growth and transformation of the Egyptian consumer healthcare firm, owns a significant 25.5-percent stake in the company, which translates to 152,982,356 ordinary shares.

The market value of her stake in IDH has dropped by $23.1 million since the year began, from $96.9 million at the start of the year to $73.8 million at the time of writing this report, owing to a 23.8-percent decline in the company’s shares from $0.63 to $0.48.

The recent downturn in IDH shares coincides with a drop in earnings in the first half of 2022 as a result of a slowing in COVID-19-related business activities, the removal of mandatory COVID-19 testing for international travelers, and a drop in the average price of COVID-19 tests.

Recent efforts to boost IDH’s earnings show marginal impact

Although the Al-Borg Scan medical diagnostics and radiology brand’s new scan branches in Egypt boosted revenue for the group’s radiology business by EGP35 million ($1.8 million) in the first half of 2022, some efforts to shore up earnings and revenue have yet to materialize.

Earlier this year, the renowned healthcare services provider, led by Hend El-Sherbini, decided to reverse its decision to acquire a 50-percent stake in Islamabad Diagnostic Center, one of the largest integrated diagnostics providers in Pakistan.

The unfavorable outcome can be attributed to several reasons, including lengthy delays in the regulatory review process, which added uncertainty and frustration to the proceedings.

The deal was also affected by unfavorable global economic conditions, such as economic insecurity and lower growth rates, as well as potential difficulties in repatriating funds from Pakistan, which is a major concern for IDH.