Mumbai: Cipla aims to achieve $1 billion sales in the US by the next fiscal year, driven by the products it has lined up for launch which the Indian drug maker expects will more than compensate for the imminent patent expiry and price erosion on cancer drug Revlimid.
“We believe our pipeline should get us closer to the target (of $1 billion) or surpass that by FY27, depending on the launch timing,” managing director and global chief executive Umang Vohra said over an investor call on Friday.
“We have plans for all our launches that are coming in to make up for the revenue losses for Revlimid and that will happen in the short to medium term,” he added. The US remains a very attractive market for Cipla. “We see it as a growth market over the next 3-5 years,” he said.
A generic version of Revlimid (lenalidomide) is one of Cipla’s top-selling products in the US. As part of an out of court settlement, Cipla manufactures and markets the drug in the US.
Analysts said the expiry of the drug’s patent is expected to significantly impact Cipla through a reduction in revenue and potential margin pressure.
Cipla has a robust pipeline for the US business with respiratory generic Advair closer to commercialisation and is also preparing for launch of generic Symbicort and a couple of inhalation products. It also plans to launch 2–3 peptide assets in FY26.
Timely monetisation of these launches remains critical for the company to offset the lenalidomide generic sales erosion, according to a report by broking firm IIFL.
Vohra sees the respiratory segment and new product launches lined up in the category to be the biggest opportunity for Cipla in the next 12 months. “We have 3-4 launches coming up for the US alone, we have several coming up for emerging markets and several for India,” he told ET.
About potential US tariffs on the pharma sector, Vohra said he does not see it having a “debilitating effect”. There will be an impact, but it will not derail the business, he said.
The company on Friday reported a 10% year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,298 crore for the first quarter ended June. Revenue rose 4% to Rs 6,957 crore and Ebitda was 25.6% of the revenue, the company stated in a filing with stock exchanges.
Its India business delivered growth of 6% year-on-year, topping Rs 3,000 crore for the first time ever in a quarter, contributing 44% to the total revenue.
Revenue from North America was $226 million (about Rs 1,955 crore) supported by traction in differentiated assets. It launched two generic oncology products in the US in the past quarter: nano paclitaxel vials and nilotinib capsules.
“This performance builds on a strong prior year-on-year quarter where we achieved our highest ever US generics revenue,” said Vohra.
Meanwhile, the company has signed an agreement to launch its first biosimilar product in the US that is expected in Q2 FY26.
“We will in-license a few assets through partnerships in the near term and maybe launch our own biosimilar assets around 2029-2030,” Vohra said.
The company is betting big on GLP-1, which controls sugar levels and appetite, and sees it as a “significant growth driver for its business.”
“For us the entire GLP 1 category is important rather than looking at individual categories within that. It will shape up in a manner depending on pipeline assets,” said Vohra. Cipla aims to be among the first wave of launchers for the drugs. The company plans to have a hybrid strategy including having its own products as well as through partnerships.
“We believe our pipeline should get us closer to the target (of $1 billion) or surpass that by FY27, depending on the launch timing,” managing director and global chief executive Umang Vohra said over an investor call on Friday.
“We have plans for all our launches that are coming in to make up for the revenue losses for Revlimid and that will happen in the short to medium term,” he added. The US remains a very attractive market for Cipla. “We see it as a growth market over the next 3-5 years,” he said.
A generic version of Revlimid (lenalidomide) is one of Cipla’s top-selling products in the US. As part of an out of court settlement, Cipla manufactures and markets the drug in the US.
Analysts said the expiry of the drug’s patent is expected to significantly impact Cipla through a reduction in revenue and potential margin pressure.
Cipla has a robust pipeline for the US business with respiratory generic Advair closer to commercialisation and is also preparing for launch of generic Symbicort and a couple of inhalation products. It also plans to launch 2–3 peptide assets in FY26.
Timely monetisation of these launches remains critical for the company to offset the lenalidomide generic sales erosion, according to a report by broking firm IIFL.
Vohra sees the respiratory segment and new product launches lined up in the category to be the biggest opportunity for Cipla in the next 12 months. “We have 3-4 launches coming up for the US alone, we have several coming up for emerging markets and several for India,” he told ET.
About potential US tariffs on the pharma sector, Vohra said he does not see it having a “debilitating effect”. There will be an impact, but it will not derail the business, he said.
The company on Friday reported a 10% year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,298 crore for the first quarter ended June. Revenue rose 4% to Rs 6,957 crore and Ebitda was 25.6% of the revenue, the company stated in a filing with stock exchanges.
Its India business delivered growth of 6% year-on-year, topping Rs 3,000 crore for the first time ever in a quarter, contributing 44% to the total revenue.
Revenue from North America was $226 million (about Rs 1,955 crore) supported by traction in differentiated assets. It launched two generic oncology products in the US in the past quarter: nano paclitaxel vials and nilotinib capsules.
“This performance builds on a strong prior year-on-year quarter where we achieved our highest ever US generics revenue,” said Vohra.
Meanwhile, the company has signed an agreement to launch its first biosimilar product in the US that is expected in Q2 FY26.
“We will in-license a few assets through partnerships in the near term and maybe launch our own biosimilar assets around 2029-2030,” Vohra said.
The company is betting big on GLP-1, which controls sugar levels and appetite, and sees it as a “significant growth driver for its business.”
“For us the entire GLP 1 category is important rather than looking at individual categories within that. It will shape up in a manner depending on pipeline assets,” said Vohra. Cipla aims to be among the first wave of launchers for the drugs. The company plans to have a hybrid strategy including having its own products as well as through partnerships.
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