Sun Pharma posts Rs 1,276 cr loss in Q1 on patent settlement

MUMBAI: Sun Pharma, the country’s largest drug maker by market cap, posted a first quarter net loss of Rs 1,276 crore, mainly because of the settlement of a patent infringement suit with US-based Pfizer.

The Mumbai-based drug maker had reported a net profit of Rs 795 crore in the year-ago quarter. The company on Friday said income from operation rose to Rs 3,502 crore in the three months to June from Rs 2,683 crore in the first quarter of last year.

Sun Pharma said it had to provide Rs 2,517 crore during the quarter to settle a patent infringement suit for Pfizer’s anti-ulcer drug pantoprazole. The company said its India business generated sales worth Rs 849 crore, a 44% jump over the year-ago quarter.

The US market, which contributes over half of the company’s sales, contributed $364 million (Rs 2,184 crore). However, sales at Sun Pharma’s Israeli subsidiary, Taro, fell 4% to $153 million, the company said.

“All our businesses continue to perform in-line with our expectations,” Dilip Shanghvi, managing director at Sun Pharma, said in a statement. “We remain focused on strengthening our existing businesses and developing a differentiated and specialty driven product basket. We also continue to review opportunities to expand and strengthen our global footprint.”