This pharma stock plunges 17% after Q3 results announcement; check details

The pharma stock dived as much as 16.84% in early trade on Monday to hit an intra-day low of ₹501.15 apiece on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE). However, by 11:52 am, the share recovered some of its early losses to 12.68 lower at ₹526.25 apiece.

Laurus Labs shares had gained almost 6% cumulatively in the previous two sessions in hopes of buoyant Q3FY25 numbers. The stock is now down over 8% for the past month but is still up over 43% over the last one-year period.

The sharp decline in the stock price on Monday could be triggered by multiple factors. The selloff was seen after reports emerged that the Donald Trump administration has halted immediately nearly all global health funding from the US. This includes the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which began under the George W. Bush administration in 2003 to prevent HIV/AIDS.

Since Laurus Labs is one of the few players in the antiretrovirals (ARVs) segment, analysts believe that the halt in US funding is likely to significantly disrupt the company’s global supply of ARVs.

Meanwhile, on Friday, Laurus Labs reported an 18.5% increase in its revenue to ₹1,415 crore for the December quarter compared with ₹1,194 crore in the year-ago quarter.

Net profit shot up multi-fold to ₹92 crore for Q3FY25 compared with ₹23 crore for Q3FY24. Operating profit, or EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation), improved 58% to ₹285.8 crore during the quarter compared with a year ago.

A major positive in Laurus Labs’ Q3FY25 numbers was the company’s EBITDA margins, which exceeded the 20% mark for the first time in seven quarters. Margins rose by a substantial 500 basis points to 20.2% in Q3FY25 compared with a year ago.

Additionally, Laurus Labs expected the EBITDA margins to improve further on better asset utilisation and productivity gains while continuing with new initiatives.