Cipla, Divi's Labs Lead Pharma Stocks Rally To New High

Shares of Indian pharmaceutical companies rallied on Friday, led by Cipla Ltd., which reported its first quarter results in line with street expectations. The Nifty Pharma index hit an all-time high of 21,703.3 points before settling 2.73% up at 21,682.4 points by market close. Eighteen of the 20 constituent stocks advanced.

The Nifty Pharma was the top sectoral gainer this week, led by Granules India Ltd., Biocon Ltd., and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

Cipla's consolidated net profit rose 18% to Rs 1,175 crore in the quarter-ended June, as compared to the Rs 1,120.4 crore consensus estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg. The results were announced during market hours and the stock jumped nearly 6%.

Laurus Labs Ltd. gained 3.5%, a day after it reported a 52% drop in net profit to Rs 13 crore, while its revenue growth was 1%.

Mankind Pharma Ltd. shares reported a decline after the drugmaker announced a landmark deal to acquire Bharat Serums and Vaccines Ltd., for an enterprise value of Rs 13,630 crore, to strengthen its position in the women's health and fertility market segment. At the end of the transaction, post-equity raise, Mankind could be sitting on a gross debt level of around Rs 6,000 crore and will incur an additional Rs 600 crore in interest costs for fiscal 2026.

Sanofi Ltd. shares also declined ahead of its quarterly financial results release.

Meanwhile, India's benchmark equity indices snapped five consecutive days of fall to end at their highest closing levels. On a weekly basis, the Nifty recorded its best streak of weekly gains since eight weeks ended Jan. 22, 2018.

Both indices ended at their highest closing levels. The Nifty closed at 24,834.85, up 1.76%, or 428.75 points, while the Sensex ended at 81,332.72, up 1.62%, or 1,292.92 points.