Apollo Hospitals on Monday announced a 3.5 per cent increase in net profit at ₹83.4 crore for the quarter ended December 31 against ₹80.64 crore reported for the third quarter last fiscal.

Even though revenue was 16 per cent higher at ₹993.3 crore, operational expenditure grew 18 per cent to ₹835.5 crore.

“Start-up costs of new hospitals, and interest expenditure are weighing on profits,” said A Krishnan, Chief Financial Officer. Over the last 12 months, the company set up three hospitals in the country, which has resulted in an operational loss of ₹5.4 crore. He said the hospitals will turn EBITDA positive by the end of the first quarter of FY15.

During the December quarter, the group opened 35 pharmacies and shut down nine, taking the total count to 1,586 stores. Revenue from this division grew 23 per cent to ₹357 crore.

Apollo Hospitals will also expand its chain of cancer care hospitals from eight to 20 during the next three years, Prathap C Reddy, Chairman, told Business Line on the sidelines of a cancer conclave last week.

The chain is working out a deal with Zimbabwe to set up a hospital in the African country, along the lines of the partnership it had struck with Tanzania earlier. “Our first set up, a super-specialty clinic set up at a cost of $9 million, will open in three-four months. With Zimbabwe, we are at the preliminary stage of signing the agreement.”

Preetha Reddy, Managing Director, said the company is working on a “family constitution” that will spell out a leadership succession plan.

The document is expected to come out by the year-end.

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