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Informist, Friday, May 22, 2026

By Eshitva Prakash

MUMBAI – Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd. said it would be 'realistic' to assume that its organic growth in India in 2026-27 (Apr-Mar) would be in the mid-teens. The management identified multiple growth drivers, including its semaglutide launch, which is expected to significantly boost base business growth, continued strong traction in the Curatio Healthcare business, and planned first-to-market launches, the company said at its post-earnings conference call.

"In the absence of any demand shocks in the financial year due to geopolitical factors, we expect that our base business may potentially deliver a very strong year of organic growth higher than the previous year," an official from the company said. "We don't know what the extent of impact (the war in West Asia) may have on the GDP growth. I mean, it's very early right now. But if at all that's going to happen, then obviously there may be some impact in the domestic market as well," he said, adding caution to the guidance. 

Speaking of opportunities in the treatment of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis (formerly known as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis), the company said it is currently conducting a phase three clinical trial for Resmetirom, which is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. "Our objective is that any new such (Resmetirom) launch should have incrementally, you know, minimum 1% to 2% of the total India growth over the first year or two years of launch," he said. "So we think this is one product that can help achieve that.

"There is currently no innovator present in India and assuming the trial completes successfully and within our projected timelines, we may be the first to launch this in the Indian market after the patent expires," an official said about Resmetirom. "This is currently projected to be a large-sized opportunity for us," he added. For India, the company is also looking to add opportunities in spaces such as oral haematopoietic, which has worked out well for them in the past.

The Curatio Healthcare business grew by 27% in FY26, driven by strong demand generation from ad spend and field force expansion, the company said. Management is "quite hopeful" that the business will continue the same strong traction in FY27 as well. Torrent Pharma acquired 100% of Curatio Healthcare for INR 20 billion in 2022, expanding into the domestic dermatology and cosmetic skin care markets. 

The company acquired a controlling stake in JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd. on Jan. 21, as a consequence of which its net debt-to-EBITDA ratio came in at 2.3 in the March quarter. The company has guided for up to INR 4.50 billion synergy by the third year of acquisition, and about 20% of that number in 2027. "The margin trajectory so far, essentially the synergy plan for the first year, I think we are tracking ahead of what we had expected," an official said. "Some costs we were able to take out a bit sooner than what we thought and hence, it would reflect in the margins accordingly. So that's a positive for us."

Speaking of the generic Semaglutide opportunity, the company said its launch is off to a "very strong start." The company has two Semaglutide brands – Semalix and Sembolic – which were the first generic oral semaglutide products in India. "Product availability in the injectable and oral formats has benefited our brand significantly, and we believe the early advantage should help sustain high market share over the coming quarters," the company said, adding that it held 38% market share among generic players as per the PharmaTrac data. The company said Pharmatrac's April semaglutide sales figures are largely accurate. It sold around INR 170 million worth of the drug in April, of which INR 60 million was from oral sales and INR 110 million was from injectable sales.

On international operations, the company said Germany continues to be hit by supply disruptions and sees sub-5% growth in the region in FY27. In the US, the company is focusing on profitability before it can ramp up its research and development spending. In Brazil, the company said, "(Growth in the country is) basically driven by a lot of new launches and particularly launches in huge markets... Rosucor and Ezetimibe, which have become one of the largest markets where we play and where we currently have about 8.5% market share, and we are working towards building that share." 

Speaking of its employee costs, the company said it is sticking to its plan to have 7,500 medical representatives in FY27, up from 7,000 in FY26. On research and development costs, the company guided for an incremental increase in the current financial year. "So we're at about 5% this year in FY26... maybe incremental half a per cent is what could be expected in the upcoming year. And it would be largely going to India and the US," an official said.

For the quarter ended March, the company reported a year-on-year decline in net profit for the first time in 14 quarters, as expenses surged and key leverage ratios jumped. The now-consolidated entity of JB Chemicals and Torrent Pharma reported healthy revenue growth, reaching multi-quarter highs in the first three months of 2026. Its bottom line declined 22% on-year to INR 3.89 billion during the March quarter, while revenues for the first three months of 2026 rose nearly 42% on year to INR 41.97 billion.  End

Edited by Saji George Titus

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