Drug-maker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has further revised its growth projection to 29 per cent for the year ending March 2014, up from 25 percent earlier.
The revision was on the back of the company’s healthy performance in the last nine months, besides the consolidation of acquisitions and other risks associated with an increase in competition for some products, Sun Pharma said.
Last November, the company had upped its growth projection to 25 per cent for the current financial year from the earlier expectation of between 18 and 20 per cent.
This was attributed to healthy growth in the first six months.
The company clocked a robust net profit of ₹1,531 crore for the three months ended December 31, up 74 percent from ₹881 crore registered in the corresponding period last year, buoyed by growth in the global markets.
Net sales from operations at ₹4,287 crore saw a 50 per cent growth over the year-ago period, the company said.
Its research and development expense was pegged at ₹306 crore, or 7 per cent of sales.
Dilip Shanghvi, Managing Director of Sun Pharma, pointed out that the company’s overall performance reflected its focused execution of its strategies.
“We are developing a differentiated and specialty business and continue to evaluate opportunities to enhance our global presence,” he added.
Overseas salesRevenue in the US was up 57 per cent, at $434 million in the quarter under review, accounting for 62 per cent of total sales.
Its sale of branded prescription medicines in India at ₹947 crore was up 20 percent from the third quarter last fiscal.
Sales in markets outside the US accounted for $84 million in the quarter under review, a growth of 16 per cent.
However, the company’s external sales of active pharmaceutical ingredients fell 17 per cent to (API) ₹174 crore in the December quarter.
The decline was due to increased captive consumption of APIs, the company said.