BackBiocon Q3 profit up 25% on business growth
Biocon Q3 profit up 25% on business growth
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Bangalore: Biocon Ltd on Thursday posted a 25% rise in consolidated net profit to ₹ 100.75 crore in the three months ended 31 December, driven by growth across businesses.
Sales were up 15% to ₹ 738 crore. Operating income grew 34% to ₹ 178 crore, bringing the margins up to 24% from 20% during the same period last year.
“Biocon has delivered the highest ever PAT this quarter and has crossed the 100 crore mark. The operating margin has also increased to 24% this quarter reflecting the improved quality of earnings. This marks an important growth milestone which will enable us to invest in advancing our research programs and expand our manufacturing and marketing partnerships, which we believe, are catalysts of growth for the future," said Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairman and managing director of Biocon Ltd.
Biocon’s research services division Syngene had turned in ₹ 100 million in profit, she added.
On a nine month basis, the total income was up 21% at ₹ 2,097 crore. Profit after tax (PAT) was up 25% at ₹ 267 crore. The biopharmaceutical business, Biocon’s largest segment, grew 22% driven by immunosuppressants, statins and branded formulations.
In the domestic branded formulations market, the insulin portfolio grew 40 percent. The company said that the response to its newly launched Insugen pen (injectible recombinant human insulin to treat diabetes) was positive and will give a boost to its insulin portfolio.
During the quarter, the company announced that its oral insulin product, IN105 had failed the phase 3 clinical trials in India. However, the product had performed well on several other tests including safety so the company would continue the development. Analysts tracking the stock had predicted that the company might choose to redo the trial with a better design to avoid some data skew that might have occurred the first time.
However, revenue from its German arm, AxiCorp, was pressured as it rejigged its product portfolio after the German government asked the drugmakers to provide a 16% rebate over the next three years, Biocon said in a statement. The product revamp will hurt the company in the March quarter as well, it added.
Shares in the company, valued at $1.7 billion, rose as much as 3.4% to ₹ 390.20 after the results and were trading marginally up at 12:53pm, in a weak Mumbai market.
They rose 17.6% in the December quarter, outpacing the sector index’s 12.3% rise.
priyanka.p1@livemint.com
Reuters also contributed to the story
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