Zydus Lifesciences Limited

Quarter ended Jun 2026

2026-08-11 Transcript PDF
Moderator

Thank you, Sir. We will now open the call for Q&A session. We will wait for a few minutes until the queue assembles. We request participants to restrict to 2 questions and then return to the queue for more questions. Please raise your hand from the ‘Participant’ tab on the screen to ask the question. The first question is from Kunal Dhamesha.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Hi, good afternoon. This is Kunal from Macquarie. Thank you for the opportunity and congratulations on a strong set of numbers. Dr. Sh arvil, with Q1 suggesting strong topline growth, would we be kind of looking at a much higher growth than what we have guided for FY27, which is currently double digit is what we have said? So, yeah, that's the first question.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, thank you for the wishes and I think , we continue to stay with the guidance that we will deliver strong double-digit growth for the year, starting with the first quarter. I think, our India business is poised to deliver significantly good traction, better than market, at least by 300 -500 basis points. So, we see mid -teens growth continuing for that business. So is our international markets and US being around single-digit growth. So, looking at that, we will still see good growth for the coming year in revenues.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Sure, sure. And for the India business, I think , last time you shared the share of the progressive brand . I believe that with a strong growth, has that gone up meaningfully in this quarter ? And should we expect that momentum of progressive brands to kind of continue at that level?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes, I think, we have seen more than expected exceptional strong growth on our innovation portfolio, which has beaten our current expectations. Also, on our value-based biosimilar, we have seen a very significant uptick on all brands. So, that has seen a very significant uptick also. So, I think , both of them have significantly aided to this momentum. At the same time, which has also led to an improvement in our Chronic basket and growth booster brand. So, I would say, the allround performance across but better than expected on the innovation and biosimilar and also the scaling up of vaccines.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Okay. The last question that I have is, you know, on the overall, some of these new growth drivers, right, in the medium term , we suggested that the branded pieces will become more than 2/3rd of the revenue, right? Would you say most of this new drivers, you know, would aid to our profitability over medium term?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes, I think , if I break down into businesses, India and EM, I agree that with the improvement in our portfolio of branded as well as chronic, we will see better 7 of 19 profitability. On the US, I would say the only scale -up that we need to do is Saro, which will require investments. But if you take our other portfolio, which is our Sentynl Therapeutics, it is already profitable, broken even and profitable, and will continue to aid to profitability . We are seeing our portfolio on 505(b)(2) also becoming profitable from now and growing. And as I said, today, it's only 10% of our business and probably by the end of the year, it will cross 15% or more, and we can only see that increasing meaningfully.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Sure. Thank you and all the best.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Ms. Neha Manpuria.

Thanks for taking my question. My first question is on the increase in the operating cost that we have seen in the current year. You know, given that we'll have the full impact of Assertio as well as Saro spend, how should we think about, you know, both the employee cost as well as the SG&A cost? When should we start expecting the incremental Saro cost to flow through? And, you know, just an update on our guidance, margin guidance, are we still maintaining the 24%+ margin guidance that we'd indicated?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, Saro, there is already certain costs that have started but we will see an increase in the second half of the year. And owing to that meaningful increase that we'll see in the second half, we are still guiding towards the 24% kind of margin.

Mr. Tushar Shroff

So, our current run rate of about, you know, ₹1,900-₹2,000 crores, I think that kind of a run rate we should assume as a part of other expenses, excluding R&D on quarterly basis.

Mr. Tushar Shroff

Yeah, it's all inclusive.

Okay. And the increase that we have seen quarter -on-quarter so far is essentially on the back of what? This increase, like Sir mentioned, Saro is one of them. But what is the other reason for the sharp increase that we have seen in costs, you know, quarter-on-quarter?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

It's all, you know, acquisition driven impact that we see on the increase in the other expenses. Largely, I would say, that about 80% increase in the cost is driven by acquisitions that we had in the last one year.

That I understand, Sir. Year-on-year, I understand but even if I look at this number quarter-on-quarter, you know, it seems like a fairly steep increase. 8 of 19

Dr. Sharvil Patel

That is because of Zylidac and Assertio.

Mr. Tushar Shroff

Zylidac, Assertio and the freight expenses.

Okay-okay, understood. My second question is on the capex. You know, we see a pretty sharp increase in capex this quarter as well . If you could give us some color in terms of where we are spending in terms of, you know, capex and what the guidance for the full year would be?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, from the capex point of view, I think , a meaningful part of it obviously is setting up of the facilities, SEZ 3, which is coming, right now the completion of the expansion that we have done in our existing facilities for higher capacity, including Moraiya, Goa, Bad di and then Unit-2, Unit-3 at SEZ. We are also building a new bigger R&D center for formulations development, which has happened. There is one -off investment in wellness for a larger land acquisition for future facility, which is exceptionally for one -time kind of investment. And then it's a new CAR -T facility that we built for biologics, new vaccines DS facility. So, there are multiple things that have led to this increase, including some investment that continues in Zylidac also. So, it's a whole host of many things. So, it is not a one particular thing that is a large item other than the wellness land acquisition, but multiple investments in increasing scale and capacity in existing and new capabilities.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, right now, we are guiding for around ₹1,500-₹1,600 crores capex.

Understood. And for Saro, based on, you know, given that we have the TAD coming in the later part of this year, how should we think about the ramp up of market sh are there? If you could give us some color to help us understand in terms of what the sales opportunity could be?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, on Saro, I mean, we are building for next FY28 launch right now, so April launch. And we are investing for that. The first 3 years, I mean, first 2 years will be just a buildup of this, so we won't see any significant revenue in the first year, at large. But as we move into second and third year, we will see the revenue mark buildup. So, I think, first 2 years will look more from an investment point of view as to how much we are investing. On the market point of view, obviously, if you see the recent guidance from both the competitors in the current segment , t hey are seeing better traction than their earlier guidance and they've upgraded some of their guidance. And that is led from higher patients, bigger patient pool and more patients wanting to access this indication. So, we are seeing a positive in terms of market being a bigger market than expected. So, we are only seeing some positive signs in terms 9 of 19 of how this market formation is happening. And so, we're quite excited with that opportunity.

Noted, Sir. And any indication that you would want to give on target market share or, let's say, peak sales that we expect from this product?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, as I always said, on a conservative side, we are looking at a $200-$300 million range. And maybe more optimistic, we can cross the $400+ million range.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Saion Mukherjee.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Hi. Thanks for taking my question. On the US, Sir, you mentioned, currently we have 10% of revenues coming from Branded. So, that would mean roughly, let's say, $130 -$135 million, right, of revenues on an annual basis. How is that like, you know, the rare disease would be like $40 -$50 million? And if you can throw some light, what are the other constituents and whether Assertio is a significant number in this?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, currently, in this quarter, which is 10%, we don't have any Assertio number. Our last year's Sentynl was around $60 million, which is the ultra -rare disease business.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Okay.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Assertio will start adding from the coming quarter. That's why we said the numbers from an analyst point of view would go up towards 15% because those numbers are still to be baked in.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Understood. So, you're saying , rare disease is around $60 million and the remaining $60-$70 million is like 505(b)(2) products. Would that be a right way to think about?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yeah, they are cluster of 505(b)(2) products.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Okay, o kay. And, Sir, this Assertio acquisition, Rolvedon sales, how should we think about the contribution this year? next year? What's the expectation there?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, I think, we have just begun. So, it seems to be on track. We are looking at around $15-$20 million per quarter run rate.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

And we would see that from next quarter, right?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes. 10 of 19

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Understood, u nderstood. And, Sir, on the India business, we have seen good growth here. I mean, what's really driving this, if you can give some color? Of course, you mentioned about innovation asset, how has semaglutide done? If you can give some color here ? I'm just wondering, what's the sustainable number? Let's say, if I take a 2-3 year horizon, how should we think about the growth for India business?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, I will try to summarize a little better. There are 2-3 things. One is, overall chronic part of our business is growing, I mean, at more than 20%. And if we look at even July numbers, that have been reported by the AWACS, we're seeing strong traction on the chronic side of Zydus therapies and growing very meaningfully. The second is, we are seeing a very, very meaningful uptick on Saro and Desi, which is adding quite meaningfully, almost 30 -45% kind of growth in this business. So, that's also adding very meaningfully and scaling up and we see that traction continuing. The other , third, is our biologics have seen extremely traction on 3-4 brands, which have also very, very significantly scaled after genericization also. So , we are seeing very strong momentum on growth. And Sema is just the beginning . So, it is a small contributor. We are third-fourth in market share today in our own brand but, overall, we are largest as a semaglutide innovative generic that we've launched. So, that also is adding to the momentum. So, I would say , it's the whole differentiated pipeline and the chronic business both helping this growth and we see that sustaining going forward.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Understood. Sir, you know, the ₹ 6500 crores of revenues that was booked last year, how much would be biologics, innovation and vaccine in that, if you can give a rough percentage?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, we're not giving any breakup because it's all the different divisions which have multiple brands, both chronic and this. So, we don't track them separately but as I said , oncology portfolio is the fastest growing and then followed by the chronic portfolio. And then vaccines is obviously a very different business, which, you know, I always said that we want to achieve the ₹300 to 400 kind of crore mark and we are on track to achieve that.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Understood. Sir, if I can ask one last question which is on the international formulation. You know, we have crossed $100 million of revenues this quarter and the growth has been exceptionally strong. I would appreciate if you can give some granular color on this, either in terms of geographic segment or product segment, which is driving this. And again, the question is around sustainability of very strong double-digit growth, from let's say next 2-3 years perspective?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, I think three things: 11 of 19 One is our core existing markets have delivered , on the emerging market front delivered. They continue to do better than last year and are growing very strongly. The second is Europe, which used to be a little difficult business for us in terms of growth , has done, has two things have changed, both our core old markets which are France and Spain have significantly delivered on growth and they continue to see a very strong traction on that and a new market entry of UK has scaled up much faster than expected and is also becoming a very important business for us. So that international part in terms of EU has started doing extremely well in terms of the revenue. And the third is, we entered new geographies and those geographies, we are seeing our innovative pipeline or first generic kind of launches in many markets. which is seeing a good healthy traction in terms of commercialisation. So, I think , all in all, all these three things are helping core markets, the Europe doing much better and the new markets meaningfully scaling up.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

All right, sir. Thank you very much.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Bino.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Hello?

Moderator

Hi Bino. Are you able to unmute yourself and ask the question?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

I think that he is unmuted but unfortunately his mic has gone off.

Moderator

Yeah, we might move to the next. The next question is from Vamsi.

Mr. Vamsi

Hi, Sir. Am I audible?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Mr. Vamsi

Thanks for taking my question and congrats on the good set of numbers. So, my first question is in terms of the 505(b)(2) portfolio that we have. So, of the 20 assets, if I am not wrong, close to 5 have been commercialized. So how much of, you know, how do you expect the overall portfolio to ramp up in terms of the launches which are scheduled for the rest of the year? And in terms of the ‘steady-state’ sales, I remember in one of the calls, we have guided that some of these assets could hit a $50 million kind of mark each. So how is that kind of panning out at this point of time?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, on our 505(b)(2), we have a good mix of our own products and licensed products also. So, we have about 19 products that we have from our in -house and own pipeline creation. We have partnered products, which are about 8 that we're working on in different areas. We have commercialized 4+ products now, 12 of 19 as we said, and we have more products in the pipeline. So, I think , it's a pipeline that we're trying to develop for the markets. From the current point of view, I would say , most of them are doing better than expected. I think the going out BEIZRAY is slower than what we had expected. And we hope, in the next financial year, we will see a bigger scale up. But beyond that, the other 2-3 products that we have launched are doing extremely well. At the same time, Rolvedon will add meaningfully to that business going forward. And then the biosimilars launched… initial launch of Ranibizumab and with the PFS coming next year and also further products, we will see a good uptick on that. And also, our specialty rare disease business on Sentynl, which has meaningfully started to do well. So, all in all, I think that's doing well and it's growing well.

Mr. Vamsi

Thank you, Sir. If I just may also ask a couple of questions around the LiqMed’s portfolio. So currently, how big is this in terms of the overall contribution and how many of the overall 505(b)(2) assets within the liquid’s portfolio have already been commercialized?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, we have around 7 launches, I think, and we have 10+ approvals and we continue to create a larger pipeline.

Mr. Vamsi

Understood, Sir. And lastly, also on Desidustat, any update in terms of our China partner launching it in the Chinese market and how the ramp up is happening there? And how big of an opportunity do you think it could be over the next couple of years?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, yes, I think we achieved the milestone of getting it approved in China now. We have supplied now API for formulation manufacturing in the market. With the time, this product is included nationally reimbursed in their drug list. So obviously, we need to get an approval through the NRDL to gain a major part of the share. But having looked at that, there are 120 million CKD patients in China. So, it's a very, very large market. And the prevalence of anemia is very strong in that market. So, looking at all of that and looking at how the peers have done in this space, we see it as a good opportunity. But first, we need to go through the registration and making sure , it is available through the reimbursement phase. And once the reimbursement phase goes through, then we can see an uptick in that business. So, maybe in a couple of quarters, we can give more highlight. But we see this being a descent opportunity, a long-term opportunity. But we'll have to wait for another 2 to 3 quarters to make sure that all the important approvals go through and the access to the molecule is created in the list.

Mr. Vamsi

Understood, Sir. Just one last question. Sir given that it's an NCE asset, and I presume that, of course, it will also be under patent protection in the Chinese 13 of 19 market. So, if not as big as Saro in comparison, like how much of steady state sales would this asset generate once it reaches its, let's say, 3 to 4 years down the line? What kind of top -line contribution could be coming from this product from the China market?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

See, the opportunity is very difficult to say right now. We have not factored in any meaningful scale in terms of our current year. But as we get experience in terms of it getting reimbursement through, then we can see it importantly doing well. Because the other molecule is doing very well, which is already launched. And I think they are doing about $200+ million in the Chinese market. So, we can see it also being a meaningful contributor to us.

Mr. Vamsi

Thank you, sir. Thanks for answering my questions and all the very best.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Kunal Dhamesha.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Hello. Can you hear me?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Yeah. Dr. Sharvil, one question on Saroglitazar. So, for the incremental addressable patient pool, one, do we need to do additional studies? If yes, what would be the size, scope, and duration of that study? And with, let's say, initial indication we already applied, would we be going for an expedited process here?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Saro is already being granted priority review by the FDA for its first indication in PBC. So that is on track. And as I said, we are building for pre -launch capabilities on that. This will be a continuing trial because we have to follow the patient through and rolling phase 3. So that will continue. We are also adding a marginal ALP trial to Saro for certain patients who have marginal ALP issues. So that will also expand the opportunity size of the market, which that trial is about to start. So those are the updates on the key trials.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

And the duration, if you could share, like, you know, there's in, let's say, expanded indication. Can it be a near-term opportunity or would take, let's say, 2 to 3 years? How should we think about it?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

No, it's not. The expanded indication is not a near-term. It will take 2 to 3 years.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Okay, sure. And any update on Usnoflast for ALS indication? When is the readout that we expect for that?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

No. So, you know, Usnoflast, as I said, we have a couple of trials that we are doing. One is a phase 2. We initiated a phase 2 (b) in the US for ALS. So that is ongoing. The study is going to enroll 240 patients against the placebo. So , that is the way it is moving on. We see it as a FY28 kind of timeline when we can see 14 of 19 some data coming out of that. So, end of FY28, late calendar year ‘28, ‘28 or early ‘29. That's when we see the data come out. On the ulcerative colitis side, we are also looking at that as a potential opportunity also. We have seen good phase 2(a) data and we hope we can in India and we hope to move that obviously in India in the next phase 2(b) or 3. And also potentially evaluate it in the US, which is under evaluation right now.

Mr. Kunal Dhamesha

Yeah, thank you.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from the Damyanti Kerai.

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

Yeah, hi. Good afternoon and thank you for the opportunity. My first question is for Dr. Sharvil . You indicated your medium -term goal of scaling up of newer initiatives. So, for these, what kind of spend you foresee whether it's towards the SG&A or building up team for specialty etc?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

We were not able to hear your question, if you don’t mind repeating it.

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

Yeah, sure. So, my question was regarding the kind of spend which you foresee for scaling up some of your newer initiative, whether it's MedTech, specialty, biosimilars. And this is also related to how should we see spend required to reach the medium-term goal of getting 2/3 rd of revenue from branded products as you indicated?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, we have already invested in biologics and vaccines. So that investment has already gone through. Also, MedTech is a business, running and growing business with which we have, which we acquired and which we also launched in India, in the Cardiovascular side. So, these businesses are already invested in and are baked into our current margin guidance.

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

So, as these businesses scale up and no major incremental spend, it's safe to assume we will be seeing margins moving up from the level which you indicated for FY27?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

FY27, we have guided for a 20…..

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

24%+, right?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

24% guidance. So that is what we are sticking to.

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

Okay. And on the biosimilars portfolio , where you just launched your big product there. So there also, what kind of timeline we should assume to see meaningful sales build up happening?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Biosimilars is already a meaningfully scaled business for us and very profitable. So, it is not a new business for us. 15 of 19

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

No, I was specifically asking for the US part. India, obviously, I think you have a very well-established presence, EM as well. But….

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yeah, US is more like a ‘29 kind of timeline when we will see that business scale up. We will have a couple of products before, but real meaningful scale up will come in the calendar year ‘29.

Ms. Damyanti Kerai

Okay, that's helpful. Thank you.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Bino.

Mr. Bino

Hi, good evening all of you. Can you hear me?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Mr. Bino

Okay, great. Sharvil Bhai, I was looking at the US trajectory over next 3-4 years. So, this year, we have Mirabegron going on, plus Riociguat should come in. Next year also, partly we have Mirabegron and Palbociclib should come in. But beyond that, do you think , there could be a dip in US revenues, even if it is a temporary one?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

No, we are currently, we still have a growing pipeline of products beyond these valuable products in the market. In fact, we recently also launched Indocyanine Green, where we got 180 -day CGT exclusivity. So, we have a future pipeline of products, which are in the 505(b)(2) and ready -to-use formats and other areas, which will all add to meaningful business. So, we do not see that kind of a fall in the US revenues.

Mr. Bino

Understood. Thank you. And one book -keeping question, if I look at the depreciation number consolidated, it has sharply gone up starting 4Q of last year and 1Q also again has gone up. So, part of it could be the acquisitions and related amortization. Is there anything else into it? And is this the level at which it will continue?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

Yeah, so I think , largely it is on account of the se acquisitions. This amount also includes the licensing amortizations that we had because of the Mirabegron settlement. So that will be up to the first quarter of FY27-28.

Mr. Bino

Do you mind calling out that number, roughly at least?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

We have not called out that number very specifically because of the confidentiality.

Mr. Bino

Okay. Anyway, it will end in the second quarter of FY28, correct?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

Yes, that is correct. 16 of 19

Mr. Bino

Okay, thank you.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Saion Mukherjee.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Thanks for the follow -up. Just you mentioned about the brand part of the business becoming two -thirds or more in the medium term. And this year has been more of an investment year for you. So, with that business mix changing towards brand, from 24% EBITDA margin today, where should you expect, let's say from an FY30 perspective, when you achieve those targets your EBITDA margin to settle at?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, I think , from the planning point of view, yes, when we are able to scale up a branded business towards two -thirds, then we should see an improvement in EBITDA margins. Obviously, the first couple of years now, you will see an investment phase on Saro and some of the other portfolio and also some increase in R&D. But ideally, we would want to be improving our EBITDA margins to 28-30% range as we move closer to the 5-year period.

Mr. Saion Mukherjee

Okay, thank you.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Rashmi Shetty.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Yeah, thanks for the opportunity. Am I audible?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Yeah. Sir , just one bookkeeping question. On Assertio, whatever consideration amount, how much are you allocating to goodwill, intangibles or anything in gross block?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

So, I think, so , we have a window of 12 months to finalize in terms of what should be the purchase price allocation of this entire consideration. But, you know, the large part of this will be towards the brand, as well as, you know, the platform that we have got from, the commercial platform that we got from this particular acquisition. So, large part will be towards intangible.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Okay, and amortisation and all has not come in in quarter one, right, for this quarter?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

Yes, that's correct.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Okay, and on your Comfort Click business, how do you see growth for this piece in FY27 and going ahead?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, we are seeing good strong double -digit growth for the business and that we see that happen for this year. 17 of 19

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Okay, and for the entire consumer business also, you see a strong double -digit growth only, right?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yeah, we are looking at a double-digit growth.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Okay, and how many launches are planned for the US business for this year?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Between 30 to 40 depending on multiple scenarios, but at least 30+ launches.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Okay, and this includes the specialty launches also, right? Hello?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

This includes the specialty launches also, right?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Ms. Rashmi Shetty

Okay, okay. Thank you. That's it from my side.

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Surya Patra.

Mr. Surya Patra

Yeah, thanks for the opportunity, sir. Sir, in fact, first question is about the gross margin. Sorry, if I am repeating the question because I slightly late joined the call. See, gross margin this quarter has seen a kind of a dip, both sequentially as well as YoY, despite of the fact that there would be some currency tailwind that would be there. So, how should one understand this? Is it entirely due to the kind of royalty or the commission that we are paying to, for Mirabegron or what is the reason that would be?

Mr. Tushar Shroff

So, Surya, on a gross margin perspective on a quarter on quarter, there is, you know, because of this Mirabegron settlement, we have the higher cost associated with that because of the arrangement that we had with Innovator. So, that is impacting on a quarter on quarter basis. Yeah.

Mr. Surya Patra

Okay. So, then, is it fair to believe that, sir, then, see this Mirabegron issue would be there in the first half, second half onwards , it would be subsiding substantially. So, then second half , gross margin scenario will go back to the normalcy situation, excluding for the kind of whatever special situation product opportunity that is there with us. Is that understanding right?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

No, I think , maybe you can contextually think differently. Mirabegron is a very good profitable driver. So, it is not a negative to the business. In fact, in spite of whatever royalty agreements we have, it still has very strong profitability. So, I won’t say Mirabegron is not the negative side of the story, but the positive side of the story, because it continues to be semi exclusive. And factoring for all of that, we have still guided for a 24 % EBITDA margin. 18 of 19

Mr. Surya Patra

Okay. So, kind of a balanced kind of a margin trajectory for the all of the quarter that we are indicating that way. Sure.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yeah. That is what we are guiding for.

Mr. Surya Patra

Second question is about the Saroglitazar US plans, the launch plans, if you can talk about and the associated cost along with that, the likely timeline, what one should think. Whether it will kind of have an initial cost impact in FY28 or how should one think if you can just?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, as I said, Saro is an FY28 launch. So, we can give you better in the last quarter when we are coming near to launch. The first 2 years will be a build out phase for the investment that we make. So, even this year and the coming year, we will see uptick in investment and post. So, that's what we are building for. And that's how we are also guiding in terms of our margins, assuming that there will be investment on Saro.

Mr. Surya Patra

Okay. And regards to the domestic business piece, see, in fact, as you mentioned in the call itself, that your performance was one of the best in the Semaglutide side because of your own brand, as well as the kind of a partnership route what you'd have adopted. But whether this is a sustainable kind of a trend even in the subsequent quarter or it is the initial benefit of channel filing and all that, what the street would have seen for everybody. So, hence, whether it is a likely sustainable trend, hence the growth in the domestic market should remain elevated and stronger. How should one think about this Semaglutide boosting the kind of growth momentum here in India?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

So, on Sema, yes, it is a sustainable momentum. But having said so, our 20% growth is not factored around Sema. Sema is a contributor, but a small contributor to that. Our growth has come from our other products rather than Semaglutide.

Mr. Surya Patra

Okay, just last one point. See, we know that this year you have mentioned about a kind of a sustaining, some single -digit kind of a growth for the US business, but because of the Mirabegron impact. But going back again to FY28, if we talk about, given the pipeline and given the kind of the Ibrance products exclusivity that is there. So, again, can we think about double -digit kind of growth in the US business?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

I mean, there are all things that we're doing with, obviously, on the generic as well as on the branded side scaling up. So, obviously, we'll see a better profile versus this one.

Mr. Surya Patra

Sure. Yeah. Yeah. Those are the questions. Thanks for taking all my questions.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Thank you. 19 of 19

Moderator

Thank you. The next question is from Vishal Manchanda.

Mr. Vishal Manchanda

Hi, thanks for the opportunity. Would you be able to share some color on Aflibercept biosimilar launch? Because you were the first one to launch that in India. So, is that shaping up well and can that be large?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yeah, I think the initial traction is good for us. We are seeing, it's a very critical product with high quality specs that is required for this and we are seeing good results on the launch of the biosimilar. So, from the ophthalmology side, this will be a meaningful product for our business.

Mr. Vishal Manchanda

And that's picking up traction well in, so based on your initial assessment?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Yes.

Mr. Vishal Manchanda

Okay. And I also saw like you also in -licensed the innovator product also in the same category. Is that right?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

You mean the generic biosimilar of that, right? Yeah, yeah.

Mr. Vishal Manchanda

No, the innovator brand as well is something you have in -licensed for the…so Eylea which is the innovator brand, has Zydus in-licensed that as well?

Dr. Sharvil Patel

We have not licensed the innovator brand.

Mr. Vishal Manchanda

Okay. Okay. Thank you. That's all from my side.

Dr. Sharvil Patel

Thank you.

Moderator

Thank you. We will wait for the queue to assemble. If anybody wishes to ask the question, please raise your hand from the participant tab on the screen. Thank you very much to Zydus Lifesciences Management team. Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of Zydus Lifesciences, that concludes today's conference. Thank you for joining us and you may now disconnect your line and exit the webinar.

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