Dr Lal Path Labs Q3 results: PAT dips to ₹90.5 cr on labour code changes

Dr Lal Path Labs reported a lower third-quarter profit on Friday after taking ‍a one-time charge ​linked to India's new labour code, despite strong demand for its bundled test packages.

Consolidated net profit fell to ₹90.5 crore ($9.85 million) in the quarter ended December 31, from ₹96.7 crore a year earlier.

The ​country's largest diagnostics firm by revenue took up a one-time charge worth ₹30.1 crore linked to India's new labour codes.

India's new labour codes - the country's biggest overhaul of workers' laws in decades - have dragged profits of large corporates, including those of Godrej Consumer Products, Wipro and Infosys.

 

Excluding the charge, profit rose nearly 12 per cent to ₹154 crore.

Dr Lal, which operates about 300 clinical labs across India, saw an 7.8 per cent rise in sample volume in the reported ‌quarter, taking its total revenue from ​operations nearly 11 per cent higher to ₹6,598 crore.

Rising focus on preventive healthcare, coupled with diagnostics chains such as Dr Lal PathLabs expanding into smaller cities, ‍has boosted demand for medical tests, particularly in urban markets.

The company also gained from strong uptake ‍of ‌its bundled test ​packages, which group screenings for ‍multiple conditions, including diabetes and thyroid disorders, into a ‍single ‍offering.