Glenmark Life Sciences profit surges 48% on API boost in March quarter

BENGALURU (Reuters) - India's Glenmark Life Sciences Ltd said on Thursday its fourth-quarter profit surged 48%, helped by growth in its mainstay business of making active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) for drugs.

The Mumbai-based drug maker's profit rose to 1.46 billion rupees ($17.86 million) in the three months ended March 31, from 989 million rupees in the year-ago quarter, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The company, spun off from Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd in 2019 to focus on the API business, said total revenue from operations jumped nearly 21% to 6.21 billion rupees in the quarter.

APIs are key biologically active elements in a drug that help with the desired health effects.

Revenue from Glenmark Life Sciences's API business, which accounts for about 90% of total revenue, grew 15.5% from last year.

The company, whose clients include Aurobindo Pharma Ltd and Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd, makes APIs for drugs used to treat ailments such as cardiovascular and central nervous system diseases as well as diabetes.

Glenmark Life Sciences' shares closed 3.4% higher on Thursday, ahead of the results. ($1 = 81.7640 Indian rupees)

 

(Reporting by Rama Venkat in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)