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Business Standard
20-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Torrent Pharma Q4 PAT up 11% on strong India biz; Aman Mehta named MD
Torrent Pharma posts Rs 498 crore PAT in Q4FY25; Aman Mehta to become MD from August 1 as part of long-term strategic succession planning by the board Sohini Das Mumbai Ahmedabad-based Torrent Pharmaceuticals posted an 11 per cent rise in consolidated profit after tax (PAT) for the fourth quarter of FY25 to Rs 498 crore, riding on a strong India business, while revenues grew by 8 per cent year-on-year to Rs 2,959 crore. The company stated that, adjusted for exceptional items, PAT growth for Q4FY25 was 15 per cent. The exceptional items relate to the closure of Drug Price Control Order (DPCO) pending litigation from previous years. Aman Mehta, currently whole-time director, has been appointed managing director of the company effective 1 August. The board approved the appointment as part of its 'long-term strategic vision and succession planning'. Aman holds a degree in Economics from Boston University and an MBA from Columbia University, New York. During his tenure with the Group, he has held leadership roles across both the Power and Pharma verticals. In his role as executive director in Pharma, he was primarily involved in the India business — Torrent's largest revenue contributor. He played an instrumental role in the integration of the Unichem acquisition and the strategic identification and integration of Curatio Healthcare. The company distributed an interim dividend of Rs 26 per equity share of face value Rs 5 during the year. Additionally, the board (subject to shareholder approval) has recommended a final dividend of Rs 6 per share. For the full year, Torrent Pharma's revenues grew by 7 per cent to Rs 11,516 crore, while PAT rose by 15 per cent to Rs 1,911 crore. India revenues, which constituted around 52 per cent of consolidated revenues, rose by 12 per cent in Q4 to Rs 1,545 crore, outperforming the market growth of 8 per cent. The chronic business grew by 14 per cent versus the domestic market growth of 9 per cent. For FY25, India revenues stood at Rs 6,393 crore, up 13 per cent. Brazil revenues were down 6 per cent, affected by depreciation of the Brazilian Real, while Germany revenues rose by 2 per cent during the quarter. Succession planning at Torrent Succession planning at the Torrent Group — which has interests in both power and pharmaceuticals — began a few years ago. In mid-2022, Aman Mehta was appointed director on the board of Torrent Pharma. In 2014, Sudhir Mehta stepped down as chairman of Torrent Pharma, and his brother Samir Mehta took over. Both of Sudhir's sons — Jinal and Varun — have been associated with the Group's power business for several years. Four years later, Samir became chairman of Torrent Power, and Jinal Mehta was appointed managing director of Torrent Power. Sudhir and Samir began working actively in their father U N Mehta's pharmaceutical business in the early 1980s. U N Mehta, a former medical representative with Sandoz, had started Torrent Pharma in the 1970s with his life savings. He strategically chose a psychotropic drug and targeted a niche of psychiatrists to avoid competition from multinational corporations. Under his sons, Torrent Pharma went on to make key acquisitions such as Unichem and Elder. Elevating Aman to the position of MD, Torrent Pharma stated on Tuesday that since his appointment as whole-time director, he has continued to make a 'significant impact' on the India business's growth and transformation journey. 'Notable contributions of his leadership include market share expansion through organic growth and strategic in-licensing, turnaround in the cardiac and diabetes portfolios with significant improvement in performance and ranking, and the launch of the consumer health division,' the company said. It added that under Aman's leadership, R&D has been more sharply aligned with business strategy, with a focus on differentiated product development and faster execution of critical projects. His inputs have helped drive operational excellence initiatives across manufacturing and supply chain functions, leading to improved productivity, cost efficiency, margins and service levels.
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Business Standard
08-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
NPPA fixes retail prices of 84 drugs, including empagliflozin combos
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed the retail prices of 84 drug combinations, including 36 variants of the off-patent diabetes drug empagliflozin, originally developed by German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim. The price revisions were approved during the 132nd meeting of the NPPA, held on 29 April. The authority is responsible for regulating prices of pharmaceutical products under the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO). The move follows the expiry of empagliflozin's patent on 11 March, which opened the market to generic versions by multiple pharmaceutical companies. The launch of these variants has led to a significant 80–85 per cent drop in prices, prompting regulatory action to fix retail rates. Several anti-hypertension drug combinations have also been brought under the revised pricing list, based on applications from companies such as Mankind Pharma, Alkem Laboratories, Lupin, Macleods Pharmaceuticals and Micro Labs. The updated list includes anti-diabetic combinations involving empagliflozin with glimepiride, dapagliflozin and sitagliptin, based on submissions from Mankind Pharma and USV. It also covers anti-inflammatory combinations such as mefenamic acid with paracetamol, as well as blood pressure drugs containing telmisartan, cilnidipine and metoprolol succinate extended release. The NPPA notification stated that any manufacturer or marketing company failing to comply with the fixed retail prices would be required to deposit the overcharged amount, along with applicable interest, under the relevant provisions. Fixation and revision of ceiling and retail prices is a routine exercise undertaken by the NPPA, which is tasked with enforcing the provisions of the DPCO, regulating both controlled and decontrolled drug prices, and ensuring affordability of essential medicines.
