Hikal narrows loss as revenue growth outpaces costs
Operating margin improved 1.15 percentage points sequentially, but depreciation and interest kept the consolidated company in the red.
Filed 03 Nov 2026, 14:27 IST · Hikal Ltd (HIKAL)
Key takeaways
- Consolidated revenue rose +7.80% QoQ while expenses grew +6.42%, lifting operating margin by 1.15 percentage points to 10.34%.
- The consolidated net loss narrowed -17.57% QoQ to Rs 6.1 cr, but depreciation of Rs 41.7 cr and interest of Rs 13.4 cr kept profit before tax negative.
- Hikal's 10.34% operating margin was 10.9 percentage points below the 21.24% median for 56 reported Healthcare peers, placing it fifth from the bottom.
Price around the results
Revenue momentum improved in Q2FY27
On a consolidated basis, Q2FY27 showed better operating momentum than Q1FY27. Revenue grew +7.80% QoQ while expenses increased +6.42%, allowing operating profit to rise +21.35% and operating margin to expand by 1.15 percentage points. The company nevertheless remained loss-making below the operating line.
Lower interest helped, but depreciation still absorbed operating profit
Interest expense fell -10.07% QoQ and depreciation declined -2.34%, helping narrow the loss, but both remained significant against operating profit of Rs 44.9 cr. Other income fell -84.11% QoQ, so the sequential improvement was not driven by non-operating income. The tax rate increased by 2.99 percentage points, which does not indicate that a lower tax burden flattered the improvement.
Margin improved sequentially but remained near the sector's low end
Operating margin increased from 9.19% in Q1FY27 to 10.34% in Q2FY27. That still left Hikal 10.9 percentage points below the 21.24% median among 56 Healthcare peers that had reported, with the company ranked fifth from the bottom. The available quarter sequence shows a one-quarter improvement, not a sustained multi-quarter margin trend.
Q2FY27 at a glance
Consolidated figures as filed with NSE — filed ahead of third-party databases, not yet independently cross-checked.
| Line item | Q2FY27 | Q1FY27 | QoQ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹434 cr | ₹403 cr | +7.80% |
| Other income | ₹2 cr | ₹11 cr | -84.11% |
| Expenses | ₹389 cr | ₹366 cr | +6.42% |
| Operating profit | ₹45 cr | ₹37 cr | +21.35% |
| Operating margin (%) | 10.34% | 9.19% | — |
| Interest | ₹13 cr | ₹15 cr | -10.07% |
| Depreciation | ₹42 cr | ₹43 cr | -2.34% |
| Profit before tax | ₹-9 cr | ₹-10 cr | +14.14% |
| Tax | ₹-2 cr | ₹-3 cr | +4.00% |
| Net profit | ₹-6 cr | ₹-7 cr | +17.57% |
| EPS (₹) | ₹-0.49 | ₹-0.60 | +18.33% |
Operating margin of 10.34% compares with a Healthcare sector median of 21.24% across 56 peers that have reported Q2FY27.
What to watch
- Whether consolidated operating margin holds above 10.34% after the 1.15-percentage-point sequential improvement.
- Whether interest and depreciation remain at or below Rs 13.4 cr and Rs 41.7 cr, respectively.
- Whether consolidated net profit improves from the Rs 6.1 cr loss.