Biocon shares fall despite turning profitable in December quarter

Biocon share falls: Shares of pharmaceutical company Biocon fell as much as 4.55 per cent to hit an intraday low of Rs 271.50 per share despite swinging back to profit in December quarter (Q3FY24).

The company also announced that Indranil Sen has resigned as chief financial officer (CFO) of the company, with effect from March 15, 2024, which may have triggered the fall in the stock.

However, the Bengaluru-based company’s profit came in at Rs 660 crore, as opposed to a loss of Rs 41.8 crore in the same quarter a year ago (Q3FY23).

The company’s revenue surged over 34 per cent annually to Rs 3,953.7 crore in the December quarter, from Rs 2,941 crore in the same quarter a year ago. The revenue growth was led by biosimilars and research services surging 65 per cent and 9 per cent , respectively. 

The drugmaker’s operating profit climbed nearly 44 percent annually to Rs 926 crore, while its margin rose 150 basis points (bps) to 23.4 per cent, from 21.9 per cent a year ago.

On the December quarter results, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Executive Chairperson, Biocon and Biocon Biologics said,” Biocon delivered consolidated revenue of Rs 4,519 crore for Q3FY24, driven by 65 per cent growth in biosimilars and 9 per cent growth in research services. Net Profit, boosted by other income, stood at Rs 660 crore.”

Shaw added, “A key milestone this quarter was the successful conclusion of the transition of the acquired business by Biocon Biologics and a pre-payment of approximately $200 million towards the acquisition related debt reduction. Steady market shares for key biosimilars in the US and EU were complemented by the Emerging Markets performance which saw a number of new product launches and tender wins."

As of 10:58 am, shares of Biocon were trading 4.15 per cent lower at Rs 272.65 per share, according to BSE.