Ladies and gentlemen, good day, and welcome to Mankind Pharma Limited Q4 and FY 2024 earnings conference call. As a reminder, all participants' lines will be in the listen-only mode, and there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during the conference call, please signal an operator by pressing star then zero on your touchtone phone. Please note that this conference is being recorded. I now hand the conference over to Mr. Abhishek Agarwal from Mankind Pharma. Thank you, and over to you, Mr. Abhishek.
Hi, good afternoon, everyone. A very warm welcome to our Q4 and FY 2024 earnings conference call. On the call today, we have Mr. Rajeev Juneja, Vice Chairman and Managing Director; Mr. Sheetal Arora, Chief Executive Officer and Whole-Time Director; Mr. Arjun Juneja, Chief Operating Officer; Dr. Sanjay Koul, Chief Marketing Officer; Mr. Ashutosh Dhawan, Chief Financial Officer; and Mr. Prakash Agarwal, President Strategy. We will begin with opening remarks from Rajeev Juneja, providing an overview of the quarter and the fiscal year 2024, followed by detailed insights of the business performance from Mr. Sheetal Arora, and Mr. Ashutosh Dhawan will be sharing the key financial performance post which we will leave the forum open for Q&A. I hope by now you had access to the investor pack shared yesterday, and I'd like to reiterate that certain statements made during today's call may be forward-looking.
A comprehensive disclaimer regarding the same is uploaded on our investor presentation and website, and press release already uploaded on our website. Now, I would like to invite Rajeev sir to share his comments.
Thank you, Abhishek, and good afternoon, everyone, and a very warm welcome to our Q4 and this year 2024 earnings call. I want to acknowledge that last week we have celebrated our first year of listing. Thanks to the unwavering trust and support of our shareholders, Mankind has swiftly risen to become.
You're not audible.
So can you hear us? Can you hear us? Okay. Additionally, during the year gone by, we have crossed the annual revenue milestone of INR 10,000 crore and doubled our revenue in 5 years in spite of multiple industry headwinds. This remarkable achievement is a testament of our unwavering passion and our firm commitment of serving mankind. Speaking of quarterly performance, we witnessed a strong quarter as our revenue increased by 19% year-on-year to INR 2,441 crore. EBITDA grew significantly by 42% year-on-year to INR 594 crore. The EBITDA margin over 24% and PAT grew by 62% year-on-year to INR 477 crore. On an annual basis as well, the company reported a strong revenue growth of 18%, increasing the revenue to INR 10,335 crore.
EBITDA increased to INR 2,550 crore, up by 33%, and PAT grew to INR 194 crore, up by 48%, primarily driven by robust growth in modern trade, hospital sales, and expansion in chronic share by 150 basis points year-on-year to 36%. We have outperformed the IPM chronic by 1.4x and CVM, IPM chronic by 1.7x. With a strong net cash position of INR 3,260 crore, we are consistently evaluating multiple opportunities with a high entry barrier to enhance our presence in chronic, consumer and other healthcare adjacent fields. With our commitment to provide international quality healthcare products to every citizen of the country, we have recently entered into an in-licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for their world-class brand, Symbicort.
In recent years, developing nations have experienced a notable rise in the number of individuals suffering from asthma and COPD condition, largely attributed to shift industry growth and substandard air quality. Presently, India accounts for approximately 13% of worldwide asthma cases, impacting individuals of all ages, thereby necessitating superior quality products to tackle this healthcare challenge. Symbicort is a dual combination inhaler brand known globally for its higher efficacy used for the treatment of asthma. We aim to grow this brand by leveraging our extensive field force and strong doctor's reach. On the operational front, we have adopted various digital and technology-led business transformation initiatives.
These initiatives are aimed at improving automation and digitalization of processes across functions to further enhance our operational productivity and efficacy, which has also resulted into reduction in our working capital from 45 days in March 2023 to 42 days in March 2024. Further, we are revamping the packaging of all our products to enhance customer experience and create better consumer awareness. In financial year 2024, the consumer healthcare segment grew by 2% year-on-year due to multiple business transformation initiatives undertaken during the year, while secondary sales were healthy. We are now observing a robust, in primary sales, robust growth in primary sales, instilling confidence that this segment will resume its past growth trajectory. Recently, we have carved out our OTC business into a new legal entity as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mankind. This strategic move aimed to sharpen our focus on this division and maximize its potential.
On the R&D front, our focus remains on developing differentiated products to cater to the unmet needs of the patients. I would like to conclude my by expressing my heartfelt appreciation to all our shareholders for placing their trust in us. With this, I will hand over to Sheetal, who will provide more details on our business performance.
Yeah, good afternoon, everyone. Today, I will be providing key insights into our quarterly and annual business performance. Let's begin with our performance for the quarter. In this quarter, our domestic business revenue rose to INR 2,174 crore, marking a 10% increase. This growth was driven primarily by strong performance in our chronic segment and the re-recovery in the gynecology segment. According to IQVIA, our secondary sales grew by 8%, outperforming the Indian pharmaceutical market by 1.4x . Our chronic segment growth was notable at 16%, surpassing the IPM chronic growth by 1.6 times. This robust performance had led to an increase in our chronic market share to 37.4%. Significant contribution came from our cardiac and antidiabetic segment, which registered impressive growth rate of 21% and 18% respectively.
These segments outperformed their IPM counterparts by 1.9 x and 2.6 x, achieving all-time high market share in their respective therapies. I would also like to highlight that our insulin brand, Nobeglar, has been recognized as the Launch of the Year in the antidiabetic category. Despite a modest 4% growth in our acute segment, we still managed to outperform the IPM acute growth by 1.2 x. Additionally, adjusting for the impact of a regulatory change affecting one of our products, our growth in acute segment would have been even more impressive, exceeding IPM acute growth by 1.3 x. Starting with our consumer healthcare business, we achieved a revenue of INR 156 crore, marking a modest year-on-year growth of 3%. We have observed some recovery in this quarter and are projecting mid-teen growth for financial year 2025.
We extended our portfolio with strategic product launches, including Ova News, which leverages the Prega News brand to detect menstrual cycles. In our international business, we saw a significant growth in quarterly revenue, profiled by one-off opportunities in the U.S. and selective product launches over the past 12 to 8 months. Turning to our annual performance, our domestic revenue climbed to INR 9,522 crore, up by 13% from last year, with secondary sales growing 8.5% compared to 7.6% IPM growth. Despite one of the youngest companies in our sector, we have scaled our brand remarkably quickly. This year, we added three new brand families to hundred crore category, bringing the total to 23. We are confident that we will continue to outperform IPM by 1.3x-1.4 x.
We have also received the British Safety Council certificate for one of our facilities, reaffirming our commitment to providing globally acclaimed quality products. In previous quarters, we have outlined a detailed roadmap of ESG towards increasing our sustainable footprint aligned with UN SDG. It gives me immense pleasure to share with you all that during the year, we achieved a remarkable milestone towards being plastic neutral, as we have successfully collected 100% post-consumer plastic waste and sent for recycling. Additionally, we have reduced our carbon emissions significantly by 85% as compared to financial year 2023. We are dedicated to contributing to a healthier Bharat by making market disruptor and setting ourselves apart from the competition. I will now hand over to Mr. Ashutosh, who will provide more details on our financial performance. Thank you so much.
Thank you, Sheetal sir. A very good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for taking out time to join our quarter four and financial year 2024 earnings call. Today, I will be sharing detailed insight on our financial performance, both for the fourth quarter and the full fiscal FY 2024. In quarter four, FY 2024, our revenue from operations increased to INR 2,441 crores, as compared to INR 2,053 crores in quarter four, FY 2023, signifying a healthy growth of 18.9% year-on-year basis. For FY 2024, our revenue has grown by 18.1% year-on-year, to INR 10,335 crores versus INR 8,749 crores in financial year 2023.
The gross margins of the company has increased by 2.6% year-on-year to 69.8% in quarter four, FY 2024, as compared to 67.2% in quarter four last year. This increase is primarily due to three factors: firstly, it's the full year price increase has provided a benefit of 1.4%. Secondly, the favorable sales mix has contributed 60 basis points to the gross margin. And thirdly, last year, we had inventory-related write-offs and approval towards COVID product, which compressed quarter four, FY 2023 gross margins by 60 basis point, which has normalized in this year. For the full year, the gross margin increased by 2.2% year-on-year basis to 68.9%, as compared to 66.7% in financial year 2023.
This is majorly on account of favorable sales mix, including increase in chronic share and the price increase impact, as we highlighted before. During the quarter, EBITDA increased significantly by 42% year-on-year to INR 594 crore as compared to INR 419 crore in quarter four, FY 2023. The EBITDA margin increased by 3.9% - 24.3%, versus 20.4% in quarter four, FY 2023. This increase in EBITDA margin is on account of increase in gross margin of 2.6%, further aided by operational leverage due to strong revenue growth for the quarter.
For FY 2024, we have reported an EBITDA of INR 2,550 crore, which is up by 33% year-on-year basis, with an EBITDA margin of 24.7%, as compared to 21.9% for FY 2023. This increase of 2.8% is primarily driven by increase in gross margin of 2.2%, and the balance is due to operating leverage and certain cost savings in the current fiscal. The R&D expenses for the year are at INR 223 crore, which is 2.2% of the revenue, and this is in line with our guidance of 2%-2.5% of sales. In quarter four, FY 2024, the depreciation and amortization expenses increased to INR 105 crore from INR 85 crore in quarter four of the last year.
If we look at for the full year, the depreciation and amortization expenses increased to INR 398 crore, versus INR 326 crore in financial year 2023, which is primarily due to higher capitalization of completed projects, which included Udaipur plant getting operationalized in quarter two of financial year 2024. Further, we have taken some accelerated depreciation related to upgradation and expansion of existing R&D site at Manesar to support future growth. The effective tax rate for financial year 2024 is close to 19.1%, as compared to 21.6% during financial year 2023. The profit after tax for quarter four, FY 2024 increased by 62% year-on-year basis to INR 477 crore, with diluted EPS of INR 11.7 per share of INR 1 paid.
The cash EPS, which is EPS adjusted for non-cash items like depreciation and amortization, was at INR 14.4 crore. For financial year 2024, PAT increased by 48% year-on-year to INR 1,942 crore, with diluted EPS of INR 47.7 per share of INR 1 paid, and the cash EPS stood at INR 57.6. During the year, we witnessed strong cash flow from operations of INR 2,152 crore due to operational efficiency, supported by reduction in the net working capital base. As on March 31st, 2024, the net good cash position of the company stands at INR 3,260 crore. The return on capital employed, excluding cash, increased to 34% in FY 2024, as compared to 25% in FY 2023.
This is due to improvement in EBIT and cash generation during the financial year 2024. The return on equity ex cash increased to 29% in FY 2024, as compared to 23% last year, primarily due to increase in tax percentage during financial year 2024. The total CapEx spending for financial year 2024 was at INR 389 crore, which is less than 4% of the total revenue. For FY 2025, we are retaining our guidance of EBITDA margin for the full year to be in the range of 25%-26%. With this, I would like to conclude our opening remarks, and now we can begin with the Q&A. Thank you.
Thank you very much. We will now begin the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press star and one on their touchtone telephone. If you wish to remove yourself from the question queue, you may press star and two. Participants are requested to use handsets while asking a question. Ladies and gentlemen, we will wait for a moment while the question queue assembles. The first question is from the line of Kunal Dhamesha from Macquarie Capital. Please go ahead.
Hi, thank you for the opportunity. So the first question on the,
You sound a bit loud. Kunal, a bit loud.
Yeah. Am I audible now?
A bit better, but louder would be better.
Okay, sure. So, you know, the EBITDA margin improvement that we have seen in this year, around 280 basis points, for FY 2024, would you be able to provide details as to how much would have come from the significant growth in export business versus the domestic business?
So, so we haven't called out the separate segmentation for the export business, and the export business has contributed to the top line. But if we compare it at the EBITDA margin, the impact is not that significant.
But the margin in that business would have improved, right? Whatever it would have been in FY 2023, would that have improved meaningfully in FY 2024?
Definitely, there is an improvement in the margin, but, as we mentioned, it is not significant to be called out to, specifically highlighted.
let's say, if you look at export business, so you are saying that the margin in export business is lower than the overall average?
I think the margin in the export business is almost at par with the company margin. It is, not something which is significantly adding to the overall margin of Mankind, but it is at par with the company average EBITDA margins.
At a gross margin level, would it be accurate, export business?
Export business at gross margin level is slightly lower than the domestic business, but the expenses in the export business are not as high as the domestic business. That's why at a better level, it's almost at par.
Perfect. And on the outlook. Yeah, yeah, you were saying something?
Kunal, the way to look at it is, we should draw comfort from the guidance. There is, as Ashutosh said, there's not much contribution or significant contribution on the base business, otherwise we wouldn't have been comfortable there.
Sure. And the outlook, you know, for the domestic formulation and consumer business provided, but on the export business, what is our expectation? What is built into our budget in terms of growth-wise?
Since the last couple of years, we had 5 products, so the base business wasn't that big. That's why you're seeing a significant growth in the export business. But moving forward, we will get about 5-7 approvals every year, so we can expect about a growth of mid-teen to the export business.
Sure. And in terms of capital. Last, last question, if I may. In terms of capital deployment, in terms of, let's say, adding a new plant, et cetera, would—for the export business, is there anything in plan or we would just focus on the plant that we have?
There is no capital deployment which is on the cards for export business.
Okay, great. I have more questions. I'll join back. Thank you.
We have support from the R&D.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Bansi from JP Morgan. Please go ahead.
... Yeah, hi, thanks for taking my question. So firstly, on the modern trade, so we've highlighted this year, modern trade has grown by 50%. Was this more skewed towards second half? And therefore, how should we think about growth in fiscal 2025? So would it be more normalized, and therefore, would the number track more closely to the secondary number that is reported in IQVIA?
So Panacea, FY 2024, we grew by 15-50%, but FY 2025, it will be normalized and aligned with whatever is the growth of IPM, whatever is the growth of modern trade in IPM. So it will be aligned with that around 10%-15%. That is the guidance we give.
Okay, and-
So we were under index, now we are reaching the index, so we should grow in line with the IPM.
Okay, understood. That's clear. And on the growth breakup, the IQVIA number shows, you know, our volume growth is still negative for the full year. But if you can guide, what do you see internally, you know, on your primary numbers as your volume growth for fiscal 2024?
So, we have not done that exercise, but what we understand, if you look at the last three years, our volume growth is higher than the IPM volume growth. And lastly, because of reasons, the one reason was there was a regulatory restriction on the sale of a product, number one. Number two, modern trade grew by 50%, where our contribution is only 6%, so this is probably not covered by IQVIA. So that is why our volume looks little bit subdued. But having said that, if you look at April this year, we are again back to our original volume growth, that is 1.38 of IQVIA.
Okay, understood. I have more questions. I'll join back with you.
Sure. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Neha Manpuria from Bank of America. Please go ahead.
Yeah, thanks for taking my question. First question is on the consumer healthcare business. I know you mentioned the mid-teens growth in the next year. If you could just give us some color on the confidence, given the 2% growth that we have, you know, done this year. I mean, what was the business transformation that you know, impacted? And if I were to adjust for that business transformation, probably, what was the growth in consumer healthcare? Just trying to understand the confidence on the mid-teens.
I think the confidence of Mankind by saying that we are carving out our consumer division separately. That means what? We're so confident that this particular division will do very, very good, number one. Number second, in the past, we, we, informed earlier as well that division was being run by a head who was taking care of pharma and consumer side. So we did what? Last year, we changed that pattern. Now we have specialist guys doing only consumer side. And by carving out, what basically happens, this particular division needs different kind of a DNA, different kind of working, some kind of automation, some kind of digitization. We have done that.
At the same time, there are certain products in the pipeline which give us so much of confidence that this particular division will do good, mid-teens, kind of a growth to us. I mean, the confidence is so much that we are carving it out. That means what? The numbers will be separate. That gives confidence to us. So we are so confident that this will do very, very good. A number of platforms, we have said that this particular division is closest to our heart, very close, because this has given Mankind a lot of name and fame. This will do very good.
From a profitability perspective, would the consumer healthcare business margins be lower than corporate average? Would that be a right assumption, and as that ramps up, probably that margin gap narrows?
Yeah, yeah. If you compare it, the EBITDA margins as compared to the company average, yes, they are lower than the company average. Having said that, there is a potential to match up to the company level in the near future for this business.
Okay. And the second question is on the, you know, exports number. You know, if I were to just look at the launches that you have done in the U.S. and the IQVIA data, is it fair to assume that all of the incremental growth that we've seen in FY 2024 has been driven by the U.S. market? Or at least bulk of the incremental growth in year-on-year in FY 2024 is the U.S. Just trying to understand the U.S., non-U.S. mix in that number.
So if you were to just talk about the export numbers, the incremental growth is majorly from the U.S. market.
So is that-
Just to add, the ROW business has also grown-
Yeah.
and US business, within the US business, the base business is growing quarter-on-quarter, every quarter. So that's the comfort you can draw.
Yeah. And if that is the case, you know, if bulk of the business come from the U.S., wouldn't the margins, EBITDA margins, be higher? Because there's not too much fixed, you know, cost that is sitting below gross margins, right, for that U.S. growth. So I didn't quite understand the reason why the margins are similar to our corporate average.
I mean, because there are certain products which are OTC products, you know, where there is significant competition. So that's why... And there is a certain one-off product which is able to compensate for that. So that's why we are saying that the margins are more or less similar.
Got it. Okay, thanks so much.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Rashmi Shetty from Dolat Capital. Please go ahead.
Yeah, thanks for the opportunity. Just, again, in the export business, you know, do you think or foresee any competition for your one-off product, in the coming year?
You know, it's a very good question. It's very difficult, you know, to foresee competition because it's a generic product. It's not a patented or a bio kind of a product. So, I mean, we can't say that there will be no competition, but it would be safe to assume that competition can come in any time. We can't predict when.
Okay, got it. Sir, second question is related to the-
But at the same time, we need to understand that the base business in the U.S. is growing. So even if the competition comes in, there will be some impact on the growth in the U.S. business, but that will get compensated by the growth of the base business and certain new launches that will happen.
Got it. So the mix of U.S. versus rest of the world, it is more skewed towards the U.S., in FY 2024. But, in FY 2025, you think that the rest of the world market will also pick up, or it will be still, the contribution from the U.S. will be still higher?
The contribution from the U.S. will be still higher, but the growth from rest of the world would increase. So it would be safe to assume that the contribution from rest of the world would increase, but U.S. would still be significant.
Got it. And sir, on Dydro, just around utilization capacity, if you can comment on that, and how the demand is picking up for the product in India market, and what is your, you know, what are your views or, you know, if you can comment on the export market also, if you're planning to do that.
So I'll answer for the plant first. The plant was started last year. We started in September of the timeframe. And the demand is fully serviced from this plant, where we have reached, you know, capacity about 60% or so utilization. In terms of exports, we are in the process of filing this product in different markets, which, I mean, approval will take about a couple of years before we start selling them commercially. Yes, the plant is still underutilized, and there is enough capacity to solve for the export market as well as the domestic market.
Okay, sir. One more question, if I may. The fundraising of INR 7,500 crores, you know, which the board has approved, any inorganic opportunity you are eyeing, you know, in case if it is yes, you know, anything is on cards, or, you are just looking at it? And, you know, what kind of size of acquisition you are looking at it, you know, if you can comment on that, it would be helpful.
See, the news has come, it's just a market speculation. The same we have cleared to you also, but yesterday by giving a letter. And by saying that, it doesn't mean that we are not exploring opportunities in market for merger and acquisition. We will definitely looking for the acquisition, but when the right time and right opportunity will come, definitely we'll go for it. Right now, it's just a speculation in the market.
Okay, sir. Thank you, Dr. Karnawat.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Atul Mehra from Motilal Oswal Asset Management. Please go ahead.
Yeah. Hi there, good afternoon, and thanks for the opportunity. Just a follow-up on the previously.
Little loud, your voice is not clear.
Is it better now?
Yeah, better.
Yes, sir. So basically, just on this, enabling resolution of INR 7,500 crore. So, normally, like, if you provide this specific number of INR 7,500 crore, it will imply that there is some calculation that has gone behind this number. Maybe you are eyeing a particular target, which is in final stages of negotiation, et cetera, et cetera. So can you just basically walk us through what is the thought process of this enabling resolution of INR 7,500 crore?
Yeah, so the way to look at it is that we already had a resolution for investment, investment of about INR 10,500 crore in debt. So we raised, first of all, the debt resolution from INR 10,500 crore to INR 12,500 crore. And then in addition, that we have added an enabling resolution for INR 7,500 crore. So we want to keep the war chest ready.
If, as Sheetal Ji mentioned, if there's an asset that will come to us, we will evaluate big and small assets. So in the past you have seen, we have acquired a large acquisition of Panacea, but we've also looked at some very small but very strategic acquisition, like Daffy, which is working very well. Combihale, which is for respiratory, that is working very well. This is more like a blanket approval, enabling resolution, which will help us to be ready for any big and small acquisition.
Right. Got it, sir. So just one small follow-up on that. So I think in the past, the largest acquisition that we have done is about, say, INR 1,600-odd crore. So is there a size limit to the kind of acquisition that you might do in the future? Like, any particular number beyond which you will not go ahead and, like, the size would be too big for us to absorb. Is there an upper limit to the acquisition size that we can go ahead with?
So, so as we mentioned that, it's a mix of both. So it's a mix of debt as well as the, the equity. And it's an enabling, resolution which has been passed. The thought process is that not to over-leverage the balance sheet of the company, it should be the right mix of debt and equity. So that's how, it should be perceived in that spirit and perspective. Right. And let me, let me come back here, let me add something here.
I mean, see, whenever Mankind has any time in the past promised, what we have said that we are in lookout for certain entities, but again, very widely towards chronic side, towards consumer side, towards certain things which can really add value to Mankind for our future growth and making sure that these products or these entities should have high entry barriers. But at no given time we are in a haste. It's like industry practice. Many pharma companies does the same.
They basically even create some kind of a watch list, I mean, take certain permissions. So we are just learning the tricks from those people so that any time anything comes, okay, fine, we are ready for that. We don't come back again and speak about these things. That's one reason. I mean, this is the first year of Mankind, and we see lot of IPO companies, how they practice, so we keep learning from these companies. That's the only thing. No haste, no hurry. Anytime our investors faith in Mankind.
I totally get the point, sir. Just, just as in, so normally what happens is companies, basically most companies, they tend to have, like, you know, bite sizes, how big an acquisition that they are, able to do. So from that perspective, I was checking that is there an outer limit on. So for example, if you were to acquire something, if the entity maybe, it should be not more than INR 8,000 crore, INR 10,000 crore, is there a limit to,
Your audio is not clear.
No, I mean, I completely understand that. See, Atul, there is no outer limit. It is always, I mean, it depends upon the opportunity. It can be, I mean, INR 100 crore opportunity, it can be INR 1,000 crore opportunity. But again I mean, anything and everything which would add some kind of a value to Mankind would give us some kind of a product which is an entry barrier, chronic side, consumer side, we can look out for that. I mean, why should we put some kind of a limit? I mean, I mean, this is not a kind of a shopping spree we are on.
Anything, right opportunity, right product. You see, look, look in the past. Panacea is the biggest one. In the past, I mean, people forget Combihale, Daffy and other products, which were very, very, I mean, reasonably low price. And just to add the financial discipline, like Ashutosh mentioned, so just to avoid over-leverage, we have given the, you know, the enabling resolution for equity. So any given point of time, the debt to equity and debt to EBITDA ratios will be well within the limits. So that's the financial comfort we can give.
Got it. Got it. Well, sir, thank you very much, and wish you all the best.
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, in order to ensure that the management is able to address questions from all the participants in the conference, please limit your questions to two per participant. Should you have a follow-up question, we will request you to rejoin the queue. Thank you. The next question is from the line of Amar Chalke from JM Financial. Please go ahead.
Yeah, thank you for taking my question, and, congratulations to the management for good set of numbers. The first question I have is on the new product launches. Our growth contribution has been around 3% for last cumulative two years. So is it possible for you to give more color on the new product launches in terms of therapies, volume, et cetera, and how it looks like for next one to two years?
And the second question I have on the pricing side, we are already in May, but I believe we must have taken price hikes from this year. Like, the last year we understood that the raw material prices had gone up, the price hike component may have been on the higher side. So this year the raw material prices have gone down significantly. So how does it look like for this year, the price growth component for our business? Yeah, thank you.
So, this is Sanjay. I'll take one question. So the first question first. So if you look at the new launches which we have planned, we believe that 3.5%-4% contribution in growth is going to come from new products. We have some big products which have been launched or in the process of being launched. Nobeglar is one, that is in antibiotic segment. We have in pain and analgesic pharma products, that is first-of-its-kind analgesic anti-inflammatory analgesic. Besides this, we have Symbicort, which we believe is a big bet for us.
So, we have another product that is for hemorrhoids management that recently was added in the INR 50 crore bracket, and we believe these are the products which are going to be big bets for us. This is your answer to your query for query number one. Second was, as per price increase, last year because of 4-year price index, we could leverage more than 5% of contribution coming from price increase. This year we believe the price increase component in overall growth is going to be between 4%-5%. But having said that, you know, we also need to understand that Mankind's overall portfolio in price control is only 15%.
So if the inflation, the wholesale price index, doesn't go by that much, it's not gonna affect our price increase, because the non-schedule formulations, we keep taking 10% price hike as and when the one year gets completed of that. So there will be price increase, more or less similar to last year. It could be down by 1 odd% , but would be more or less similar. So thank you for taking my question. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Harsh, from Bandhan AMC. Please go ahead.
Yes, thank you. Most of my questions are answered, but if you could help us understand, little bit more on Panacea Biotec, the FY 2024 growth, as well as what is happening on the ground, or maybe some numbers as well?
So, whatever brand and company we took from Panacea, everything has been fantastic. I mean, growth in the vicinity of more than 25% +. That kind of a thing, where one product, Glizid, has crossed INR 100 crore sales. It has come in the group of INR 100 crore. Sitcom is another brand, which is for hemorrhoids. We bet very heavy on that. That's a treated product as well. It all in all, it is a very, very successful acquisition. We're very, very happy with the performance of all the, all the brands of Panacea. Even the transplant division is also doing fantastic, which is very, very niche. When we took Panacea, we asked ourselves, "Can we make this kind of a division?" The answer was no, and that's why we will be going for this.
So we are very, very cognizant to the fact, what we cannot build ourself, then only we look out. Otherwise, no. We have such a big sales force, anytime, for a me-too product or a simple product, we can go for it. Then we also missed one thing, that, distinct quality is one product. This is the only, Mankind is the only company to which AstraZeneca has given their global brand in Symbicort. That's the kind of confidence they kept in us. Last year it was a different brand in-licensed product. Last year was there, and very soon, we give you a news in the next quarter as well. One more in-license will happen. So, people see us as a vibrant, aggressive company. That's one reason that we keep giving you good news like this in future as well.
Sure. And just to, sort of again, bridge the gap between the FY 2025 margin guidance. Let's say, even if your export sales, because it is, generics and, heavy cyclically, dependent number, let's say even if the numbers were to remain flattish, we would still be able to achieve that threshold of 25%-26% margin, right? Because a lot of the levers that you might be building in might be, India-driven to that extent.
Yeah, I think your observation is correct. See, 90%+ business is still domestic. If you see the growth already highlighted, is outperforming IPM by about 1.3x. So you'll definitely see a better growth and operating leverage to kick in through that. That's why the margin guidance is one notch above, versus what was given, 24%-26%, now it is 25%-26%. The levers to that is higher chronic. So chronic, as we know, that we already see in a 160 basis points improvement YoY. This will every year see some improvement, which is higher margin portfolio. We are seeing increase in number of INR 100 crore and INR 50 crore brands. So once it reaches a threshold of INR 50 crore, INR 100 crore brand, the incremental effort is lesser, the productivity and profitability is better.
Plus, the third metric, important metric, is MR productivity. So there also it has improved from 6.1 last year to now 6.5, and as we speak, with higher growth, that matrix will continue to grow, and that typically drops down to the EBITDA margin. So these are the three big levers in the domestic business, apart from the new launches, the in-licensing, et cetera, which will give a better flavor. And also the new divisions, I think, like, I think you asked about Panacea. So apart from transplant, where it already, you know, access to new set of doctors, we have now recently launched our urology division. So it gives a set of, new set of products, new set of doctors. So these are the new, you know, white spaces we are addressing, which will help us grow and eventually have better margins.
Sure, Prashant. Thank you. Thank you so much.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Nitesh Dutt, from Burman Capital. Please go ahead.
Hi, sir, thanks for the opportunity, and congrats again on a good set of numbers. I have a question on our manufacturing strategy. So I think it was mentioned in the RHP that roughly 25% of our manufacturing is by a contract manufacturer. So want to understand, number one, is it still at similar levels, and do we want to maintain the mix or increase outsourcing? And second, is it split amongst a lot of players, so sort of segmented supply base, or is it consolidated amongst a few large suppliers for us?
So correct. I mean, our manufacturing strategy is still the same. More than 35% of our products are manufactured in-house, and we keep continuing to shift the products from contract manufacturers as and when they become slightly big or meaningful to move them in-house. Because of 2-3 reasons, we have a better control over the supply chain, we have better control over the pricing of the product.
But having said that, there will be, you know, about 20%-25% of our products, which will continue to be manufactured at contract manufacturers, because, A, we might not be having those type of manufacturing facilities in-house. B, or we might not be having those kind of skill sets in-house. But having said that, we ensure that the quality standards of these contract manufacturers are at par with our in-house manufacturing facilities. We have a lot of big contract manufacturers who manufacture for us, where the quality standards are as per Schedule M and WHO guidelines.
All right. So how many partners could we typically have?
It would be difficult to say right now. I don't have an exact number, but, there is a good set of partners that we have.
All right. Thanks, I'll come back in a bit.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Tarang from Oldbridge Mutual Fund. Please go ahead.
Hello. Hi, good afternoon, and, you know, congrats on an extremely set of Q4 and full year numbers. I'm perhaps extending a line of questioning around capital allocation. You know, the business has about INR 3,000 crore cash in books. You know, going forward, what business segments and geographies could this and perhaps additional capital be put to use, you know, to grow your business from here on? And second, given the traction in the exports business, how serious are you about this business? Would you be open to, say, an international acquisition?
So I will answer the second question first on the export business. I mean, if you see our R&D expenses are about 2%-2.5% of our revenues every year. If one were to really ramp up the export business, these R&D expenses need to go significantly up, as you must have seen in the books of our peers. So we've always maintained in the past that majority of the business, more than 90% or 90% of the business, would continue to be domestic. Export business would be less than 10% of the overall numbers of Mankind, and we are not looking at any acquisition outside of India.
Okay. And within India, I mean, overall, I mean, what business segments, what are the, you know, from a strategic standpoint, if you could give us some direction, would you want to probably moving towards therapies which increase chronic share in your business? Just some light.
So if you see overall, I mean, till about a few years back, Mankind's covered market share was about 60%. But in the last few years, our total market share has increased from 67% at the time when we were IPOing, and now it is about 69%. So we've, we have seen that there are white spaces in the portfolio, which Prakash mentioned, which were in the field of neuropsychiatry, which we're trying to fill up, which was urology, which we have filled up now, which is nephrology, and there are certain oncology, critical care products were there. So we are trying to fill up those white spaces and, you know, launching products in those business segments. And the endeavor is to reach the covered market share of around 72%-75%, where most of our peers are sitting.
One more point, if I may. So within the therapy like diabetes, we didn't have these insulin pens. So fiscal 2024, we introduced the pen. So if we are present in therapy, but not the sub therapy, we are doing that also. So in respiratory, we were not there in inhalers. Now we are significantly present in inhalers. So that's also the white space within the therapy that we are expanding.
Okay. Last, I mean, gross margin expansion has been pretty decent for FY 2024. Do you, do you intend for this to stay here, or do you think it'll probably cool off a bit?
So if you see historically, our gross margins have increased year-on-year, barring couple of years, where the raw material prices significantly went up. We are taking price increases wherever possible. If you see our price increases are also to the tune of 4%-5%. I mean, we don't see any significant jump in the RM prices over the next couple of quarters. We, so we see you know some jump in the gross margins as you might have seen over the last couple of years.
So no significant jump in RM prices for the next two quarters, and you'll continue to take price increases where you can, correct?
Correct.
Okay, thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Kunal Dhamesha from Macquarie Capital. Please go ahead.
Hi. Thank you for the opportunity again. So on the EBITDA margin, while we have given the guidance for the next year, but, let's say when we think, beyond FY 2025, you know, FY 2026, 2027, how do you expect, our profitability to move, you know, in the next three, four years? Some of our peers with a good chronic contribution, could be meaningfully, you know, higher currently as compared to us. Do we aspire to be in that, you know, league where our EBITDA margin could be 35% +, you know, five years down the line?
So, Kunal, I mean, if you see, our chronic portfolio till about a few years back was around 30% or so. I mean, there is significant work which is going on to improve our chronic share. Even this year, we've seen our chronic share has gone up to 36%, and the chronic margins are definitely better than the acute margins. And with the chronic share going up, maybe in the near term to about 40%, in the long term, to about 45%-50%, we see improvement in the EBITDA margins happening, and there will be operating leverage because of productivity increase that you're seeing, which is happening year-on-year.
So definitely there's gonna be improvement in this EBITDA margins. But having said that, you should not just look at Mankind with EBITDA margin improvement. There's gonna be improvement in EBITDA margin, but we, as a company, would always want to go for growth, and we will invest for growth. There has to be a balance between investment into growth and EBITDA margins improvement in a steady way.
Sure. So, do we expect our field force et cetera, increase, at least in the next couple of years? And what is the current number?
You see, I mean, whenever we increase our field force, it is always in balance between whichever therapy areas we are not there, we go for it. On the basis of that, we expect approximately, I mean, 700-900 people can be increased this year as of now. I'm saying as you go, I mean, not in different quarters.
Sure, sure. And what is the current number, sir?
Again, again, not to forget that whenever we increase, we make sure one thing, that, the productivity at no point should go down. And look at last year, productivity it was, it was 6.5 versus last to last year, it was 6.1, despite of increasing field force. So we basically maintain this kind of a balance that, we should really increase, productivity, this number of people, keeping productivity in mind as well, and the area of therapy in which we are not present. And to actually find in last 2019 till now, we have increased, increased 3,000+ field force, but our productivity has gone up in the last three four years. Current number is 16,000.
Including the first line managers?
Yeah.
Without that, the pure MR number?
Around 12,000. 12,500.
12,500. Okay. Perfect. Okay. Thank you, and all the best, sir.
Thank you. Participants, please limit your questions to one per participant. Should you have a follow-up question, we will request you to rejoin the queue. The next question is from the line of Tushar Manudhane from Motilal Oswal Financial Services. The participant got disconnected. Next question is from the line of Alankar Garude from Kotak Institutional Equities. Please go ahead.
Yeah, hi. Thank you for the opportunity. So historically, if we look at our track record before Panacea, we have always had a slightly conservative mindset when it comes to M&A. And now, we believe that there is no outer limit for any potential acquisition. So it would be helpful if you can elaborate on what has driven this change in approach?
Yeah, you are absolutely right. Being a company, we have a conservative mindset, but after acquisition of Panacea Biotec and Daffy and Combi hale, we have seen we have become very successful. And because we have become very successful, so right now, the time has come that definitely we will go for a merger and acquisition. And, I mean, let me add on this. One thing you must have seen that we are very, very conservative, so that DNA would never go away. One, anytime we think of any kind of a M&A, one thing is there in our head, that it should really add value to Mankind's product. It should not be just to add revenue, it should add some kind of an entry barrier product. It should have chronic side, it should have consumer side.
Whatever we have said in the past, whether it was consumer, chronic, whatever, you see the outcome is there in front of you, a few years back to three years. But every year we are adding 1% or 1.5% share increase in our chronic side, because we said that. We acquired those companies like that. So we are very, very strategical in this. It can be small, it can be big, but depending upon the opportunity, sometimes the opportunity is imminent.
That's one reason. Again, we have taken inspiration from some of the pharma companies which just keep this watches ready so that we don't really end up wasting time. That's the only thing. We are not in a hurry, we'll not do something rash. We are always very cautious with the fact that a lot of investors have an amazing faith in Mankind, so that is really making us more responsible.
That's reassuring, sir. And maybe one follow-up there. Is any outer limit on debt to equity or debt to EBITDA when it comes to any M&A?
So, I mean, again, as we mentioned, we'll always make sure that, at no given time, the EBITDA of Mankind is being affected by the interest. So being a conservative company, we'll make sure that it should always be 50/50. That sort of a thing. Yeah, I mean, in terms of numbers, you know, we are talking about, debt to EBITDA not exceeding around 2x-2.5 x. So that discipline, financial discipline, we'll maintain.
Understood, understood.
Thank you.
Thank you and-
Yeah, Alankar.
Sorry, sir, you were saying something? I missed that.
No, just to add to what Prakash Ji has said, that we will be mindful in over-leveraging to the sense that it should not impact the ratings of the company. So that financial strength should be maintained. So it's going to be a combination of cash on the books, the debt, and the equity.
Fair enough, sir. Understood. Thank you and all the best.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Amit Kadam from Canara Robeco Mutual Fund. Please go ahead.
Yeah, hi, sir. Good afternoon. So my question is again in the extension what Alankar asked, again, on that particular capital allocation strategy, because this is something which we are really curious about to know. The question is on the payback side. So assuming, because we don't know the kind of acquisition you desire to do, there is no outer limit. But also you mentioned about the debt to EBITDA kind of thing, Prakash just mentioned. But just wanted to understand, based on your previous acquisitions, small and large, whatever, what was the payback periods you usually target from such kind of acquisition? That was the only question from my end.
So we are commenting on one thing, which is, you know, from a qualitative side, which is high entry barriers, synergistic benefits, as well as complementary, catering to the white space that we discussed. On the quantitative side, we have talked about that we'll not over-leverage. We'll maintain that debt to EBITDA and debt to equity ratio. From a, other financial parameters, I think it's a combination of all these things put together, that will lead to that decision. There is nothing imminent. I think the street is reading too much into it. At the right time and the right thing comes, then only we are going to take it. Otherwise, you know, the financial discipline is very, very important for this company.
Yeah. So basically, that number we are not right now calling out. That's, that's a fair assumption, or should-
Yeah, I mean, it depends on the asset, the size, the cash flows. I mean, there are multiple things. Nothing on imminent, so we can't call it out.
Just to complement what Prakashji has said, that we, we are mindful that whatever these opportunities are there, it should not be EBITDA dilutive, it should not be return on capital and profit dilutive. So those are the parameters we give very high weightage to while evaluating the assets.
Okay. That's okay, in that case.
No, no, no, no. Let me add one more thing, that as Prakash said, the street is reading too much. We have not gone for anything till now. I mean, sometimes, I mean, there are a lot of speculation in the market. I mean, TV starts reporting certain things, and that really happens. I mean, that's just to create some kind of a buzz in the market for their own kind of reasons and benefits. We have not gone for anything.
But that looking to our current EBITDA of INR 2,500 crore-INR 3,000 odd crore will do, and then are mentioning that where our debt ceilings are in terms of EBITDA to debt to EBITDA of 2x-2.5 x. It just gives me a particular indication that debt requirement, if at all for any acquisition, shouldn't be more than INR 5,000-INR 6,000 odd crore. And then when we are taking such kind of enabling resolution of, like, INR 12,500 crore, it just confused me. And then along with it, with equity. So all those things, and just on a sideline, if there is something, news article is being floated, it just confuse the investors.
So wanted more clarity about our capital allocation strategy, because you also on one end says that we don't want to go too much into export. Export should be less than 10%, where usually those kind of acquisitions are asset-heavy. Domestic side usually are more on the acquisition of brands and et cetera, which are, like, intangible. So then where this such kind of large enabling resolution was heading us to was a little confusion from the investor's point of view. But I guess I got part of my answers, and then we'll just take it later. Thanks.
Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Tushar Manudhane from Motilal Oswal Financial Services. Please go ahead.
Am I audible now?
Yes, sir.
Yes, Tushar.
So just on this respiratory division, which was launched in 2021, so currently, how many MRs would be there? And it's heartening to note that we've got this Symbicort in the portfolio. So if you could just elaborate in terms of number of MRs and, you know, what kind of positioning, what made, you know, AstraZeneca to have a deal with us? Thanks.
So one point, respiratory is not a new division for us. We are top five player in respiratory. It's just that we are more on the oral solid side, syrup side, where we have a lot of cough syrups and, you know, other products. It's. We were talking about the new chronic respiratory, where apart from these products, there are a lot of chronic products and inhaler products that has been introduced, allergy products have been introduced. So it's very difficult to call, say, that respiratory has this many MRs.
We can give you on a 1:1, what is the new division of respiratory? Just give a number about. I think it should be around 300, 200-300, but we'll come back to you. That's not an issue. But let's be clear that the respiratory division was not 2021. It's just the one of the chronic respiratory that came in 2021. I hope it's clear.
Yeah. Got you. But even on the size-wise, at least as far as the therapeutic composition is given in the presentation, respiratory is 5% of sales, domestic business, which comes to almost about INR 500 crore, right? So is that the right way to understand respiratory?
5%. It is 9%. Yeah, if you see the presentation, it is 9%.
Okay. Maybe color signals-wise, it got confused. All right. All right. Thank you. That's it. That's it from my end.
Okay, thank you. We can close the call?
Yes, sir. Due to time constraint, that will be the last question. I would now like to hand the conference over to the management for closing comments. Over to you, sir.
Thank you so much, for all the questions and answers and for your patient listening. Thank you so much.
Yeah, if there are any follow-ups, you can reach to Abhishek, myself, or Ashutosh Ji. Thank you so much.
Thank you.
Thank you. On behalf of Mankind Pharma Limited, that concludes this conference. Thank you for joining us, and you may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.