Sun Pharma Q4 net down 14% to Rs 1,223 crore

The board recommends dividend of Rs 3.5 per share

Drug major Sun Pharmaceutical  on Friday reported a 14 per cent decline in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,223 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, on account of pricing pressure in the US market. The company had reported a net profit of Rs 1,416 crore for the same period of previous financial year.

Income from operations during the period also declined to Rs 6,825 crore, as compared to Rs 7,415 crore in the same period of previous financial year, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries said in a statement.

For the year ended March 31, the company posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 6,964 crore, up 53 per cent, from Rs 4,545 crore in 2015-16.

Income from operations stood at Rs 30,264 crore compared to Rs 27,888 crore in the previous financial year.

“Our fourth quarter performance reflects the impact of the challenging generic pricing environment in the US,” Sun Pharma Managing Director Dilip Shanghvi said.

Despite this, the company continues to invest in enhancing specialty pipeline, he added.

Commenting on product pipeline, Shanghvi said: “We will be gradually filing Tildrakizumab in all key markets in the next few quarters. We recently had a pre-NDA meeting with the US FDA for Seciera and we are on track to file this NDA by third quarter of FY18.”

During the quarter, the US FDA lifted import alert on its Mohali facility while remediation efforts are on-going to bring back the Halol facility into full cGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practices) compliance, he added.

The company's board, which met on Friday, recommended dividend of Rs 3.5 per share of Rs 1 each for the year ended March 31, 2017.