Biocon Sells Syngene’s Shares Worth Rs 686 Crore

Biocon Ltd. on Tuesday sold 80,00,000 equity shares of Syngene International Ltd. for approximately Rs 686 crore, according to an exchange filing. However, the company also added that the transacted value is the gross amount on the exchange and is subject to statutory levies, brokerage, etc.

The transaction, which took place in the open market, was undertaken via block deals on the BSE. None of the buyers belong to the promoter, promoter group, or group companies, Biocon's filing added.

Post the transaction, the Kiran Mazumdar-led company's shareholding in Syngene shall stand at 52.46%.

Recently, on Dec. 2, Biocon has informed stock exchanges that its subsidiary Biocon Biologics Ltd. had received US Food and Drug Administration approval for Yesintek, a biosimilar for Johnson & Johnson's reference product, Stelara. Biosimilars are medicines similar to original medicines but available at a far lower price to make them accessible to large sections of society who cannot afford the original medicines.

For the second quarter of fiscal 2025, the Bengaluru-based company's consolidated net profit had fallen 84.3% to Rs 27.1 crore compared to Rs 172.7 crore in the year-ago period.

According to a note by Motilal Oswal, currency headwinds in the biologics segment, pricing challenges, and a planned shutdown in the generics segment affected the overall performance of the company in the second quarter of FY25.

The brokerge added that "despite these challenges, Biocon delivered improved profitability sequentially thanks to a strong revival in its Syngene business," it said. "It also continued to gain decent market share by volume in its key biosimilars in the US and EU. New launches, including liraglutide in the UK market, should boost the outlook of its generic segment in the second half of FY25."

Shares of Biocon Ltd. closed 0.11% lower at Rs 369.20 apiece on the NSE, compared to a 0.04% decline in the benchmark Nifty 50.