Cipla Ltd steered the India business to growth delivering better than expected performance for the September quarter. Revenues last quarter expanded 10 per cent driven by 6 per cent growth in India. Also, in June quarter when business in India was hit by realignment of distributors (domestic revenues dropped by 12 per cent) revenue growth at the company decelerated to 1.3 per cent. The impact of the changes in the distribution network is expected to linger on for some time. But the recovery has been rather rapid. Revenues in India jumped 29 per cent from the June quarter.
The recovery is expected to continue. According to Antique note, Stock Broking Ltd “2Q saw a recovery in Gx (generics) business that will continue in 3Q. With branded business on a strong footing and performing in-line with Indian pharma market as per secondary data, Cipla seems to have come out unscathed.”
With no new limited competition drug launches in the US in the immediate future, the fear earlier was the sequential slowdown in the North American market may weigh on Cipla’s earning. But with the mainstay India business now on a recovery path, those concerns will be allayed to some extent. “While we acknowledge that competition to gVoltaren gel, gSensipar and gPulmicort is intensifying, domestic recovery should ensure there is no undue pressure in the next couple of quarters until material US launches re-start from 4Q,” Antique Stock Broking adds.
