Lupin Shares Jump Over 2.5% as US Drug Approval Boosts Investor Sentiment

Mumbai, June 18: Shares of Lupin rallied sharply on Wednesday, closing at Rs 2,327.10, up 2.43% or Rs 55.10 from the previous close of Rs 2,272.00. The stock opened at Rs 2,283.80 and climbed steadily through the day, touching a high of Rs 2,337.90 before settling near its peak, after dipping to a low of Rs 2,279.20 in early trade. 

Looking at the chart, the stock had a fairly quiet start to the day, moving in a narrow band between Rs 2,275 and Rs 2,290 through the morning and early afternoon. The real action began around 1:30 PM, when the stock broke out of this range and climbed sharply to cross Rs 2,320, eventually touching its day’s high of Rs 2,337.90 by mid-afternoon. It held on to most of these gains for the rest of the session, ending the day comfortably higher. 

Weekly Trend 

Looking at the past week, Lupin’s stock had actually been losing ground before Wednesday’s rally. It started the week around Rs 2,274 on June 11, rose briefly to a high of Rs 2,290 on June 12, but then slid steadily over the following days, bottoming out near Rs 2,270 on June 15. From there, it began recovering slowly, inching up to around Rs 2,272 by June 16, before Wednesday’s strong rally pushed it up to Rs 2,327 — comfortably wiping out the week’s earlier losses and putting the stock at its highest point of the week.

New Medicine Launch in the US 

The rally was driven by some good news from the company. Lupin announced that it has launched a new medicine in the US called Azilsartan Medoxomil Tablets, which comes in two strengths — 40 mg and 80 mg — and is used to treat high blood pressure in adults. The company received approval for this from the US drug regulator, the FDA. This medicine works the same way as an existing drug called Edarbi, which is made by a company named Azurity Pharmaceuticals. 

What makes this launch especially good news for Lupin is that the company was the first to apply for approval, which means it gets a 180-day window where it’s the only company allowed to sell this generic version in the US — giving it a head start over competitors. According to data from IQVIA, a healthcare data firm, this drug currently generates about $53.5 million a year in sales in the US market, so this exclusivity period could meaningfully boost Lupin’s American business. 

This launch comes at a good time for Lupin, right after the company posted a very strong set of quarterly results, with profit jumping nearly 88% compared to the same quarter last year. Investors will now be watching closely to see how much extra revenue this new drug brings in over the coming months. 

Source

• https://www.nseindia.com/get-quote/equity/LUPIN/Lupin-Limited