Biocon shares slip over 4.5% after Q3 results, partnership with Sandoz

Biocon share price: Biocon shares witnessed selling pressure in the morning trade on Friday, February 9, a day after the biopharmaceutical company released its December quarter (Q3 FY24) numbers.

The stock slipped as much as 4.55 per cent to Rs 271.50 on the BSE. It finally ended 3.67 per cent lower at Rs 274.

The company on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 660 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2023, on the back of robust sales. It reported a net loss of Rs 42 crore in the October-December period of the last fiscal.

Total revenue rose to Rs 4,519 crore in the third quarter as against Rs 3,020 crore in the year-ago period, while revenue from operations stood at Rs 3,954 crore, up 34 per cent YoY. As per Zee Business Research desk, this includes Rs. 350 crore of gain on the sale of brands in branded formulations.

According to the research team, the company's adjusted numbers were lower than estimates. The desk had estimated the company's adjusted EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation, at Rs 577 crore, against the estimates of Rs 830 crore. Similarly, adjusted margins stood at 16 per cent, whereas the estimate was 23 per cent.

The desk further notes that YoY numbers are not comparable due to the Viatris acquisition. On November 29, 2022, Biocon Biologics, a subsidiary of Biocon, announced that it had completed its multi-billion-dollar (USD) acquisition of the global biosimilars business of its partner Viatris Inc.

In a separate development, the company said that its subsidiary Biocon Biologics has signed a five-year partnership with Sandoz AG ('Sandoz'), which provides Sandoz with exclusive rights to promote, sell, and distribute biosimilar Trastuzumab (market value of AUD$35 million1) and biosimilar Bevacizumab (market value of AUD$45 million2) in Australia.