Nomura initiates coverage on this newly listed CRDMO stock and sees an 18% upside despite a 22% correction

Global brokerage firm Nomura has initiated coverage on the newly listed Anthem Biosciences with a ‘Buy’ rating and a target price of Rs 740 for December 2026, implying an upside of 18% from current levels.The initiation comes despite the stock falling 22.4% over the past three months since listing in July 2025. Nomura believes the correction presents a favorable risk-reward opportunity for long-term investors, driven by Anthem’s positioning in the fast-growing CRDMO (Contract Research, Development, and Manufacturing Organization) space.

The company has based its target of Rs 740 on 50x its estimate of Rs 14.8 EPS for December 2027, putting Anthem in a fair value range of 40-60x, which Nomura believes is justified due to its high margin profile, superior execution and low exposure to non-CRDMO companies.Nomura highlighted that the Indian CRDMO industry is expected to grow at ~13% CAGR to USD 15.4 billion in FY29, surpassing the ~9% growth in the global industry.

Within this landscape, Anthem, as an integrated CRDMO with both small and large molecule capabilities, is well positioned to outperform. Nomura estimates that Anthem could achieve growth of ~17% over the same period, thanks to its diverse service offering across the entire drug development lifecycle, including drug discovery, development and manufacturing.

The brokerage highlighted Anthem’s strong positioning in newer modalities such as ADC, RNAi, peptides and oligonucleotides – an area where only a few Indian CRDMOs have built a track record. Anthem has built long-term customer relationships through its fee-for-service (FFS) model, which Nomura sees as a differentiator versus peers that rely heavily on Full Time Equivalent (FTE) contracts. Anthem’s portfolio is highly specialized, with strong exposure to enzymes, biosimilars, GLP-1s and fermentation-based products. In addition, the specialty ingredients segment, which accounts for 18% of sales, adds a niche and differentiated advantage. The brokerage firm also pointed to Anthem’s early investments in biopharmaceuticals (beginning in 2006), which provided a head start in building a comprehensive platform that includes both large and small pharmaceutical customers.

Nomura forecasts revenue growth for Anthem of 14%/18%/22% and earnings growth of 27%/21%/26% in FY26/27/28 respectively. While revenue growth may decelerate from a high base in the near term, the brokerage expects new acceleration from FY27 onwards, supported by new launches, capacity expansion and deeper customer engagement on core products.

Anthem also boasts one of the highest revenue-to-employee productivity metrics among its peers, further increasing confidence in its efficiency and scalability.

Nomura does caution that Anthem’s revenues remain sensitive to its two main products, which are expected to contribute 36-38% of sales in FY26-28. This concentration is currently well managed, but carries a risk of volatility in the short term should adverse developments occur in these product lines.

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