Dr Reddy's Q2 profit slips to Rs 305 cr, beats estimates

Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd posted a better-than-expected second-quarter net profit on Tuesday, helped by higher revenue from its European business, driving shares of the drugmaker up to a one-month high.

Revenue from the company's European global generics business rose more than 36 per cent from a year ago to Rs 242 crore, the Indian drugmaker said in a statement. 

The company's net profit dropped marginally to Rs 305 crore, versus Rs 309 crore a year ago, but the number beat analysts' average estimate of Rs 288 crore, Thomson Reuters data shows.

Revenue from the company's global generics business in North America fell 11 per cent to Rs 1,432 crore as consolidation among drug distributors in the region continued to erode the ability of export-driven Indian drugmakers to negotiate prices.

Compounding their woes was US regulatory scrutiny of foreign manufacturing sites that has led to bans on many plants over quality control issues.

Dr. Reddy's shares rose almost 3 per cent to their highest in more than a month in a broader Mumbai market that was trading down 0.2 per cent.