MADRID, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Spanish drugmaker Grifols

said on Thursday it was on track to meet its targets

for the year after its net profit fell 7.5% in the third quarter

from the same period a year ago but its core earnings rose 27%.

The company, which focuses on human plasma-based drugs,

booked a net profit of 52 million euros ($56.11 million) in the

period on revenues worth 1.79 billion euros, up 12%.

Analysts polled by LSEG expected revenues of 1.75 billion

euros during the period.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and

amortization (EBITDA) in the first nine months of the year rose

24% to 1.25 billion euros. Nine-month revenues rose nearly 9%

year-on-year.

Grifols had said it expected revenues to rise more than 7%

this year and EBITDA to surpass 1.8 billion euros.

Canadian fund Brookfield together with the

Grifols family

are in the process

of taking over the company with a view to potentially

delisting it.

The company has lost around 30% of its market value

since January, when Gotham City Research, a short-seller fund,

has released multiple reports accusing Grifols of overstating

earnings and understating debt, which Grifols denies.

Spain's stock market regulator CNMV

said

in September it was sanctioning Gotham City for allegedly

manipulating the market for Grifols shares, and the pharma group

for some defective financial reporting.

($1 = 0.9267 euros)