Pharmaceutical major Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL) registered a 52.03 per cent drop in net profit to Rs 121.2 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2008, as compared with Rs 252.7 crore in the same period last year. Revenues, however, increased 29.7 per cent to Rs 1,615 crore during the quarter as against Rs 1,245 crore. Earnings per share (diluted) declined to Rs 7.2 from Rs 15 in the same period last year.
Driven by key markets of North America, Russia and Germany, the company's global generics business increased 39 per cent to Rs 1,112 crore from Rs 800 crore in the second quarter of 2007-08. Revenues from pharmaceutical services and active ingredients increased to Rs 480 crore as against Rs 440 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.
DRL incurred a net forex loss of Rs 29.6 crore during the quarter as against a gain of Rs 25.9 crore in the same quarter last year. The company also incurred a net interest expenditure Rs 22.9 crore, compared with a net interest income of Rs 4.2 crore. Consequently, the finance cost of the company this quarter stood at Rs 48.2 crore as against the net finance income of Rs 30.2 crore in same quarter last year.