Shares of Solara Active Pharma Sciences were locked at the 20% circuit floor of Rs 775.05 on the BSE on Thursday after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 1.4 crore for the December quarter (Q3FY22), also its 52-week low, on the back of revenue lower. The pharmaceutical company posted a profit of Rs 65.78 crore in the same period last year (Q3FY21).

The stock has corrected 58% from its 52-week high of Rs 1,859.30 hit on May 19, 2021. About 55,000 shares had changed hands as of 09:33am, with 770,000 pending orders on the NSE and BSE.

In 3QFY22, the company’s revenue fell 74% quarter-on-quarter and 76% year-on-year to Rs 105 crore. It reported an operating loss of Rs 817 crore against a profit of Rs 885 crore in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.

During the quarter, operating income declined due to continued weak demand for ibuprofen and a few other key products and delays in the approval of Covld-19 products. In addition, the Group also included a provision for sales returns to execute its strategy of shifting sales to direct customers, significantly limiting channel sales.

In addition to this one-time impact, management said, “Solara’s Q3FY22 performance was subdued, mainly due to subdued market demand in regulated markets and higher costs resulting from a volatile materials pricing environment and increased logistics costs”.

Nonetheless, management believes the demand side has bottomed out and business will return to normal starting in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022.

“We remain committed to our long-term goals for growth and profitability, which we expect to rebound from the second half of next fiscal year. In the near term, we expect the revenue trajectory to return to pre-Q3FY22 levels,” management said.

Meanwhile, Solara announced that Bharath R Sesha has resigned as the company’s managing director and chief executive officer and director (MD & CEO) to pursue interests outside the company. Rajesh Salwan, who currently serves as the company’s executive vice-chairman, has been given additional responsibilities as MD and CEO, the company said.

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