Zydus Wellness hits new high; surges 32% post Q3 results

The stock hit a new high of Rs 1,298, up 11% on the BSE in intra-day trade on back of heavy volumes.

Zydus Wellness hit a new high of Rs 1,298, up 11% on the BSE in intra-day trade on the back of heavy volumes. In past two weeks, the stock of this packaged foods company has rallied 32% from Rs 982 on February 6, after reporting a strong earnings growth for the quarter ended December 2017 (Q3FY18). By comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex has lost 0.83% during this period.

Zydus Wellness reported 44% year-on-year (YoY) jump in net profit for the third quarter of the current fiscal to Rs 362 million on the back of robust growth in income from operations.

Total income from operations was up 23% YoY to Rs 1,324 million on a GST-adjusted basis. The earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortised expenses (Ebitda) was up by 49% to Rs 332 million during the quarter under review.

The company's flagship brand Sugar Free continues to enjoy leadership position with 94.4% share of the market. EverYuth Scrub and EverYuth Peel Off Mask continued to maintain leadership position in their respective categories with 33% and 86.5% market shares respectively, Zydus Wellness said while announcing Q3 results.

Analysts at Anand Rathi believe the revenue growth momentum will continue going ahead, driven by focused distribution expansion, greater investment in brand-building, innovations and a pick-up in the international business. However, the stock is currently trading close to its revised target price of Rs 1,280.

At 02:01 pm; Zydus Wellness trading at Rs 1,275, up 9% on the BSE, as compared to 0.39% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. The trading volumes on the counter more than doubled with a combined 119,584 shares changed hands on the BSE and NSE so far.