Why Nomura continues to back Glenmark Pharma; Retains 'Buy'; Find out here

Analysts at Nomura continue to back Glenmark Pharma, citing the company's ability to strategically acquire high-potential innovative products.

Pharmaceutical company Glenmark Pharma has reinforced its strategy to expand its innovative cancer drug portfolio through strategic partnerships, following its latest in-licensing agreement with Hengrui Pharma for Trastuzumab Rezetecan, an oncology ADC (antibody-drug conjugate), analysts at Nomura noted. 

 

Under the terms of the agreement announced on September 24, 2025, Glenmark will obtain exclusive rights to develop and commercialise the product largely in India and select emerging markets, while Hengrui retains rights in developed markets including North America, Europe, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Russia/CIS countries.

 

As part of the deal, Glenmark Pharma will make an upfront payment of $18 million to Hengrui. The Chinese company is also eligible for regulatory and commercial milestone payouts of up to $1.1 billion, with royalties on net sales following commercialisation.

 

 

That said, analysts at Nomura continue to back Glenmark Pharma stock, citing the company’s ability to strategically acquire high-potential innovative products. “In-licensing is part of Glenmark’s strategy to build a branded patented drug portfolio,” the brokerage noted, highlighting that over the next 5-7 years, Glenmark Pharma expects innovative brands to generate $350-400 million in revenues from products already in-licensed.  ALSO READ | Tata Motors shares drop 5% in 2 days as JLR cyberattack rattles investors

Trastuzumab Rezetecan: Promising ADC with strong efficacy profile

 

Trastuzumab Rezetecan is an ADC that combines a humanised HER2-directed monoclonal antibody (Trastuzumab) with a cleavable tetrapeptide-based linker and DNA topoisomerase-I inhibitor (Rezetecan). The drug-antibody ratio – six cytotoxic molecules per antibody – compares favourably with other approved ADCs, such as Enhertu (8:1) and Kadcyla (3.5:1).

 

The product has shown a robust efficacy profile in clinical trials. For Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) patients, the objective response rate (ORR) was 74.5 per cent, considerably higher than the typical second-line treatment ORR of 30 per cent and surpassing Enhertu’s 57.7 per cent for the same indication. 

 

Median progression-free survival (PFS) for Trastuzumab Rezetecan stood at 11.5 months, almost double that of standard second-line therapies. In breast cancer trials – the likely largest market – the ORR has exceeded 70 per cent, a figure that compares favourably with ORRs for Enhertu (82.7 per cent) and Kadcyla (43.6 per cent).

 

The drug has already received approval in China for HER2+ unresectable locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC patients who have received at least one prior systemic therapy. In September 2025, China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) accepted the drug for breast cancer, granting it priority review status and designating it as a breakthrough therapy for nine cancer indications including NSCLC, breast, gastric, colorectal, biliary tract, and gynecologic cancers.  ALSO READ | Sun Pharmaceutical: Domestic, innovation push eyed; Nuvama maintains 'Hold'

Building a sustainable branded pipeline

 

Glenmark Pharma’s in-licensing strategy is already showing results, analysts said. The company has in-licensed six products over the past two years, including partnerships with Chinese firms BeOne and Jiangsu Aplhamab. 

 

Nomura noted that innovative branded product sales were approximately $80 million from Ryaltris in FY25, with Ryaltris expected to reach peak sales of $150 million and Envafolimab around $100 million. BeOne products in India could contribute roughly $20 million at peak, while Trastuzumab Rezetecan is expected to be the largest contributor to Glenmark’s $350-400 million target in innovative drug revenues over the next 5-7 years.

 

Given these strategic moves and strong clinical data, Nomura has retained its ‘Buy’ rating on Glenmark Pharma, with an unchanged target price of ₹1,500 per share.

 

On the bourses, Glenmark Pharma share price rose up to 1.64 per cent to an intraday high of ₹2,051 per share. At 12:00 noon, Glenmark Pharma share price was trading 1.55 per cent higher at ₹2,049 per share. By comparison, BSE Sensex was trading 0.28 per cent lower at 81,489.47 levels.