Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has reported a 16 per cent jump in net profit at Rs 2,523 crore in the December quarter (Q3FY24) announced on Wednesday.

The company had reported a profit of Rs 2,166 crore in the year-ago period. Revenue for the company was at Rs 12,380 crore, up 9.5 per cent on-year as compared to Rs 11,100 crore in December of FY23.

The results were driven by strong sales in its domestic and US markets.

The consolidated profit after tax beat analysts' estimate of Rs 2,417 crore, according to LSEG data.

The drugmaker has also announced an interim dividend of Rs 8.5 per share of Rs 1 each, with the record date at February 09, 2024. 

The interim dividend shall be paid on or before February 23, 2024, the company said.

In terms of sales of formulations in India for Q3FY24, the figures stood at Rs. 3,778 crore, up 11.4 per cent - accounting for about 31 per cent of the company's total sales. 

Sales in its US formulations business was up almost 15 per cent to Rs 3,974 crore. Notably, both businesses account for over half of the company's total sales.

Sun Pharma is headquartered in Mumbai and makes generic and specialty medications for chronic and acute treatments, over-the-counter medications, anti-retrovirals, and active pharmaceutical ingredients. It is the world’s fourth largest specialty generics company with presence in Specialty, Generics and Consumer Healthcare products.

In terms of sales for global specialty drugs, the figures were at $296 million, up 24 per cent omitting a 'milestone' of $20 million, Sun Pharma said, but did not divulge more. Notably, speciality drugs are costlier and are used to treat complex chronic diseases.

The results follow Dr Reddy's and Cipla's, with both companies beating their respective third-quarter profit estimates.

Shares of Sun Pharma rose 3.22 per cent at Rs 1,415 per share after the results on Wednesday, January 31. The company's shares rose 8.7 per cent during the reporting quarter.