Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited — Q1 FY26 earnings call

Call held 6 Aug 2025

Management summary

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited reported a robust Q1 FY26, with consolidated sales growing 10.1% and EBITDA increasing 19.2%. The India business demonstrated strong performance with 13.9% growth, maintaining its No. 1 market position. Innovative medicines continued to be a key growth driver globally, offsetting some decline in the US generics segment. The company also provided updates on new product launches and R&D pipeline advancements.

Highlights

  • Consolidated sales stood at Rs. 1,37,861 million, registering a growth of 10.1% over the last year.

  • EBITDA for the quarter was Rs. 43,017 million, recording a growth of 19.2% over the previous year, with an EBITDA margin of 31.1%.

  • Adjusted net profit for the quarter was Rs. 29,961 million, up by 5.7% from the corresponding period last year, with an Adjusted EPS of Rs. 12.50 per share.

  • India formulation sales were Rs. 47,211 million, growing 13.9% YoY, and Sun Pharma holds an 8.3% market share, ranking No. 1.

  • US business grew by 1.4% to $473 million, driven by innovative medicines, despite a decline in generics.

  • Global innovative medicine sales were up 16.9% to reach $311 million.

  • R&D investments for Q1 FY'26 stood at Rs. 9,029 million (6.5% of sales), or Rs. 7,667 million (5.6% of sales) excluding an exceptional charge of Rs. 1,362 million for SCD-044 impairment.

  • The company maintains a strong balance sheet with a net cash position of $3.1 billion.

What they filed

Q1 FY27: revenue up 2.6%, net profit up 49.7% against the same quarter last year.

₹ Cr · quarterly
Line itemQ2 FY25Q3 FY25Q4 FY25Q1 FY26Q2 FY26Q3 FY26Q4 FY26Q1 FY27
Revenue5,122 6,181 7,179 5,595 4,548 −11%5,688 −8%4,924 −31%5,741 +3%
EBITDA1,332 1,705 3,059 1,910 1,184 −11%1,759 +3%1,329 −57%1,964 +3%
Net profit838 1,156 2,042 745 564 −33%705 −39%609 −70%1,115 +50%
How to read this

₹ crore, as filed. The percentage beside a figure is the change against the same quarter a year earlier — never the quarter before, which would make every seasonal business look like it collapses and booms each year.

Guidance & targets

Cost

  • LEQSELVI and UNLOXCYT Launch Costs (Direct) Cost · FY26 · High confidence $100 million
    But I think our estimation is that the overall cost of 100 million, we will be sustaining during the year. You don't see that much in the first quarter, but it will start coming.

    — Dilip Shanghvi, Chairman & Managing Director

Tax Rate

  • Effective Tax Rate Tax Rate · FY26 · High confidence 25%
    For the full year, we can consider around 25%.

    — Jayashree Satagopan, Chief Financial Officer

Regulatory Filing

  • Ilumya PsA Indication Filing Regulatory Filing · CY25 · Medium confidence before the end of this calendar year
    Hopefully, we should be able to file the product before the end of this calendar year. But that's not something that I am 100% sure about, but that's the plan.

    — Dilip Shanghvi, Chairman & Managing Director

Product Launch

  • UNLOXCYT Launch in US Product Launch · H2 FY26 · High confidence second half of FY'26
    We are planning to launch UNLOXCYT in the US in the second half of FY'26.

    — Dilip Shanghvi, Chairman & Managing Director

Regulatory Approval

  • Ilumya PsA Indication Approval Timeline Regulatory Approval · post filing · High confidence 10-12 months
    10 months-12 months.

    — Richard Ascroft, CEO (North America)

2 min read

Detailed narrative

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited delivered a strong performance in Q1 FY26, with consolidated sales reaching Rs. 1,37,861 million, marking a 10.1% year-over-year growth. This growth was supported by favorable gross margins, attributed to a better product mix and a higher contribution from innovative medicines. The company's EBITDA grew by 19.2% to Rs. 43,017 million, achieving a healthy EBITDA margin of 31.1%. Profit before exceptional items and tax increased by 16.6% to Rs. 39,908 million. However, exceptional items of Rs. 8,180 million, primarily due to SCD-044 impairment and GXMDL settlement, impacted the reported net profit, which stood at Rs. 22,786 million. Adjusted net profit, excluding these items, was Rs. 29,961 million, up 5.7% YoY, with an adjusted EPS of Rs. 12.50. The effective tax rate for the quarter was 24.3%, higher than 16.1% in Q1 FY25, with management guiding for a full-year tax rate of around 25%.

The India business was a standout performer, with formulation sales growing 13.9% to Rs. 47,211 million, contributing 34.2% to total consolidated sales. Sun Pharma maintained its No. 1 ranking in the Indian pharmaceutical market with an 8.3% market share, outperforming the IPM. The growth was primarily volume-led and driven by new product launches and a concentrated effort on brand building and prescriber engagement. In the US market, overall business grew modestly by 1.4% to $473 million. This growth was fueled by innovative medicines like Ilumya, Cequa, Winlevi, and Odomzo, but partially offset by increased competition in the generics segment, which saw a decline quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year. The company launched 4 new generic products in the US during the quarter and announced the launch of Leqselvi for severe alopecia areata.

Global innovative medicine sales surged by 16.9% to $311 million. The company reported positive Phase-III clinical study results for Ilumya in active psoriatic arthritis, supporting potential regulatory submissions, with a filing targeted before the end of the calendar year and an approval timeline of 10-12 months post-filing. Sun Pharma also completed the acquisition of Checkpoint Therapeutics, adding UNLOXCYT to its innovative portfolio, with a planned launch in the US in the second half of FY26. The direct costs associated with the launch of Leqselvi and UNLOXCYT are estimated to be $100 million for FY26, separate from amortization charges.

Total R&D investments for Q1 FY26 were Rs. 9,029 million (6.5% of sales), with Rs. 7,667 million (5.6% of sales) excluding the SCD-044 impairment. Innovative R&D accounted for 41% of the total R&D spend. Management reaffirmed its R&D guidance for FY26, indicating that R&D expenses would be higher in subsequent quarters to meet the full-year target. The company continues to invest in building its R&D pipeline for both generics and innovative medicines, with GL 34 Phase-II studies set to commence. Sun Pharma's balance sheet remains strong with a net cash position of $3.1 billion, earmarked for future investments. The company is actively engaging with the FDA regarding Halol observations and is awaiting a response for a final resolution.

This is an AI-generated summary of a publicly available earnings call transcript.
View original transcript

More Healthcare earnings calls