BENGALURU (Reuters) – Cipla, India’s third-largest generic drugmaker by sales, reported fourth-quarter profit above expectations on Friday, driven by strong demand for its products in its key U.S. markets
The company reported a 78.5% increase in net profit to 9.39 billion rupees ($112.5 million) for the quarter ended March 31, beating analysts’ estimate of 8.11 billion rupees as per LSEG data.
Cipla’s total revenue rose 7.4% to 61.63 billion as its North American generics business, its biggest segment, jumped 12%. Domestic sales rose 7% during the quarter.
The company’s U.S. sales have been consistently bolstered by strong demand for its generic version of Revlimid, a blockbuster cancer drug developed by Bristol-Myers Squibb. Cipla launched its version of the drug in September 2022.
Other generic drugmakers such as Dr Reddy’s, Sun Pharma and Zydus Lifesciences have also benefitted from rising sales of their own generic versions of Revlimid in the U.S.
Peer Dr Reddy’s beat fourth-quarter profit estimates on Tuesday, driven by strong U.S. sales of Lenalidomide, its generic version of Revlimid.
Meanwhile, Bristol Myers is facing pressure from generic competition for Revlimid, which was once its top-selling drug.
($1 = 83.4875 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
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