Sigma Healthcare


Sigma Healthcare Limited is a full line wholesale and distribution business to pharmacy. It is also the owner of Australian pharmacy retail brands: Amcal Max, DDS, Amcal and Guardian. Guardian should not to be confused with the East Asian pharmacy Guardian.

2010 restructure

Sigma restructured in 2010, disposing of its generic drug manufacturing business.
On May 3, 2017, Sigma board of directors and shareholders voted on a change of name to Sigma Healthcare Limited. The publicly listed company also change the ASX ticker from SIP to SIG at this time.

Financial performance

The company's sales revenue grew 1.1 percent to $3 billion in 2013-14, while net profit climbed 187 percent to $53.5 million.

Mergers & acquisitions

In March 2014, Sigma acquired Central Healthcare Services, in a deal worth $24.5 million. In September 2014, the company bought the Queensland-based Discount Drug Store banner for $26.7 million. The DDS acquisition was set to add 120 pharmacies under that brand to the Sigma network.

2010 trading halt

In 2010, Sigma shares were placed in a trading halt on the Australian Stock Exchange – initially due to a profit warning. Since then, allegations of accounting irregularities and preferential deals negotiated with certain pharmacy chains that left Sigma losing money at the expense of their own Amcal and Guardian Pharmacies banners and forsaking cashflow emerged. The trading halt was lifted later that year. The events resulted in the initiation of a shareholder class action before the Federal Court of Australia.