Cipla Q3 Results: Net profit rises 10% but fails to keep up with analysts' estimates

Cipla on Wednesday reported a net profit of Rs 801 crore for the October-December period, an increase of 9.9 per cent compared with the corresponding period a year ago. The Mumbai-based drug maker's revenue grew six per cent on a year-on-year basis to Rs 5,810.1 crore, according to a regulatory filing. 

Both topline and bottomline fell short of analysts' estimates. 

According to Zee Business research, the drug maker's quarterly net profit was estimated at Rs 914 crore and revenue at Rs 6,168 crore.

The pharmaceutical major's EBITDA margin — a key measure of a business's profitability — improved by 190 bps on a quarter-on-quarter basis and 150 bps on a year-on-year basis to 24.2 per cent, in line with analyst expectations. 

The company's quarterly margin was estimated at 24 per cent, according to Zee Business research. 

"Our performance reflects sustained momentum in core One-India and US businesses driving our overall revenue growth of six per cent reported and 11 per cent on a ex-COVID basis. Our One-India franchise delivered strong performance across therapies and segments with double-digit market beating growth in prescription on a COVID-adjusted base," said Umang Vohra, 
MD and global CEO, Cipla. 

Revenue from the North America market reached its highest level in a quarter, to $195 million, driven by the contribution of differentiated products and market share expansion in flagship respiratory and peptide franchises, he said.

The Cipla stock declined by Rs 22.5 or 2.1 per cent to end at Rs 1,039 apiece on BSE after the earnings announcement amid overall weakness in the market.

Cipla shares lost 3.6 per cent of their value in the quarter ended December 2022, a period in which the Sensex benchmark rose 5.9 per cent. 

Catch LIVE stock market updates here. For all other news related to business, politics, tech, sports and auto, visit Zeebiz.com.