Aster DM eyes double revenue growth to ₹13,500cr by FY30

Aster DM Healthcare Ltd. has set a target of doubling its revenue to Rs 13,500 crore by FY 30. The company is focusing on expanding key departments, such as oncology, transplant programs, and neurosciences as part of its growth strategy, according to Alisha Moopen, Deputy Managing Director.

The firm will focus on a more sustainable 20–25% compound annual growth rate in revenue, driven by internal growth, cost optimisation, and synergies from a recent merger.

“We have a significant bed capacity that’s getting added within the commitments of expansion right now. While we are looking at some inorganic opportunities later, with this merger, it’s a large capacity coming together,” she said, referring to the company’s merger with Quality Care India Ltd., a Blackstone-backed healthcare provider that operates a hospital chain under the brand name Care.

The company plans to increase its bed capacity to 6,800 by the fiscal year 2027, following the acquisition. “The integration of these two units, once approvals come through, will be our biggest priority,” Moopen said.

She said the Competition Commission of India’s approval would likely come in the next couple of months. “That’s a major milestone that we’re waiting for. And we again continue to expect that it (merger) will conclude by the end of this year or early next year,” she added.

Moopen also discussed the promoters reducing their share pledge from 99% to 41% after completing a debt refinancing transaction with global financial institutions.

The pledge was initially made to secure a bridge loan for the GCC sale, and after the transaction and special dividends, they were able to repay most of the loan, she added.

“With this refinancing, we’ve now created a much cleaner structure, reducing the pledge significantly to 41%. This reduction has also lowered the loan-to-value and strengthened our commitment to further growth, including the potential QSIL merger and larger bed expansions in India,” Moopen said.

She highlighted Aster DM’s plans to re-evaluate the strategy for further reducing the promoters’ share pledge within the next 12 months, particularly after the completion of the merger.

Meanwhile, the company is focused on further reducing its promoter pledge in the next 12-18 months, with the upcoming merger, Quality Care India Limited (QCIL), playing a crucial role in this process, according to Deputy Managing Director Alisha Moopen.

The promoters recently brought down their pledged shareholding from 99% to 41% after refinancing debt with global lenders like JP Morgan, HSBC, and Barclays.

“The goal is to significantly reduce the pledge over the next 12-18 months, and the merger will play a key role in this process,” Moopen said, stating that the restructuring has strengthened the financial position of both the promoters and the company. NDTV Profit/CNBCTV18