Zydus Lifesciences shares rise 2% on expanding its biosimilar portfolio

Zydus Lifesciences shares rose 2 per cent on Wednesday after it announced two key developments aimed at expanding its biosimilar portfolio

Shares of Zydus Lifesciences Ltd. rose nearly 2 per cent on Wednesday after it announced two key developments aimed at expanding its biosimilar portfolio and strengthening access to advanced therapies.

 

The pharma major's stock rose as much as 1.77 per cent during the day to ₹936.45 per share, the biggest intraday rise since November 12 this year. The stock pared gains to trade 1.2 per cent higher at ₹931.2 apiece, compared to a 0.08 per cent advance in Nifty 50 as of 10:55 AM. 

 

Shares of the company snapped a three-day losing streak on Wednesday. The counter has fallen 4 per cent this year, compared to a 9.5 per cent advance in the benchmark Nifty 50. Zydus Lifesciences has a total market capitalisation of ₹94,143.25 crore. 

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Zydus Lifesciences' key developments

Zydus Lifesciences said its wholly owned subsidiary, Zydus Lifesciences Global FZE in the United Arab Emirates, has entered into a strategic partnership with Formycon AG for the exclusive licensing and supply of FYB206, a biosimilar of Keytruda (pembrolizumab), for the US and Canadian markets. 

 

Formycon will handle development, regulatory filings, manufacturing and supply, while Zydus will lead commercialisation in these regions. A Biologics License Application is expected to be submitted to the US Food and Drug Administration soon. Zydus said the tie-up aims to make immunotherapy more affordable and accessible.

 

Separately, Zydus has launched Zyrifa, a biosimilar of denosumab, used to treat osteoporosis and prevent skeletal complications in cancer patients. The therapy is indicated for patients with bone metastases arising from cancers such as breast, prostate, lung, kidney, thyroid, head and neck, myeloma and other solid tumours. Zyrifa has been priced at ₹12,495.

 Zydus Lifesciences Q2 results recap

The pharma major has posted a 17 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) rise in revenue from operations to ₹6,123 crore, while net profit rose 38 per cent to ₹1,258.6 crore, aided by consistent performance in the US and India formulations businesses.

 

Research and development (R&D) investments for the quarter stood at ₹482 crore, or 7.9 per cent of revenues. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) for the quarter rose 38 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 2,015.8 crore, with a resulting Ebitda margin of 32.9 per cent, an improvement of 500 basis points from a year earlier.  

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