Note: This is a preliminary transcript and may contain inaccuracies. It will be updated with a final, fully-reviewed version soon.
Dr Lal PathLabs Ltd (NSE: LALPATHLAB) Q4 2026 Earnings Call dated Apr. 30, 2026
Corporate Participants:
Shankha Banerjee — Chief Executive Officer
Ved Prakash Goel — Group Chief Financial Officer and Chief Executive Officer International Business
Unidentified Speaker
Analysts:
Nishit Solanki — Analyst
Bino Pathiparampil — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Anshul Agrawal — Analyst
Abdulkader Puranwala — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Unidentified Participant
Prakash Kapadia — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Unidentified Participant
Unidentified Participant
Unidentified Participant
Vamsi Hota — Analyst
Presentation:
Operator
Ladies and gentlemen, good day and welcome to the Dr. Lal Path Labs Q4FY26 earnings conference call. As a reminder, all participant lines will be in the listen only mode. And there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during this conference please signal an operator by pressing STAR and then zero on your touchstone phone. Please note that this conference is being recorded. I now hand the conference over to Mr. Nishit Solanki from CDR India.
Thank you. And over to you sir.
Nishit Solanki — Analyst
Thank you. Good evening everyone and welcome to Dr. Lal Path Labs Q4FY26 earnings conference call. Today we are joined by senior members of the management team including Mr. Shankar Banerjee, CEO and Mr. Ved Prakash Goyal Group CFO and CEO International Business. I would like to share a standard disclaimer. Some of the statements made on today’s conference call could be forward looking in nature. And the actual results could vary from these forward looking statements. A detailed statement in this regard is available in the results presentation which has been circulated to you and also available on stock exchange websites.
I would now like to invite Mr. Shankar Banerjee to share his perspectives. Thank you. And over to you, sir.
Shankha Banerjee — Chief Executive Officer
Yeah. Thank you Nishid. And good evening everyone. I am pleased to join you today to discuss our performance for the fourth quarter and full fiscal 2026. We conclude the year on a strong note, maintaining our steady growth trajectory. Our FY26 performance underscores the resilience of our business model and the continued preference of patients towards clinically reliable organized diagnostic providers. We achieved revenue of Rupees 703 crores in Q4FY26 with a growth of 16.6% and Rupees 2,763 crores in FY26 with a growth of 12.2%.
This performance has been primarily driven by growth in sample volumes. A significant highlight this quarter was the successful Hosting of Medlumina 2026. A first of its kind international medical conference from Dr. Lal Path Labs. This landmark event brought together over 500 clinicians and global thought leaders to deliberate on the new era of diagnostics. Specifically focusing on high complexity domains such as oncogenomics, transplant, immunology, infertility, autoimmunity and rare genetic disorders.
By creating a platform over two days of scientific dialogue and collaboration we are not only reinforcing our scientific leadership and brand equity among the clinician community but also accelerating the adoption of high end specialized testing. This initiative underscores our position as a vital clinical partner deeply integrated into the precision medicine ecosystem. To build further on our scientific leadership, we have started a wide ranging RD program. It encompasses tie ups with leading academic institutes with specific research projects, international companies and startup ecosystem collaborations as well as in house research projects culminating with publications in reputed medical journals.
On the operational side, we successfully executed our expansion plan for the year adding 14 new labs and more than 1100 collection centers. These additions coupled with the integration of cutting edge AI, diagnostic tools and specialized testing platforms ensure that we are well positioned to meet the rising demand for high quality accessible healthcare across the country. Our preventive healthcare brand Swastfit contributed 27% to our total revenue in FY26, proving to be a critical lever for B2C growth.
Sustained growth in SWASTFIT continues as we deepen market penetration and offer a wider range of packages. An important milestone of our strategic journey this year has been the launch of Sovaka in the premium wellness space. Sovaka is not just an addition to our portfolio, it represents a foray into AI powered precision health screening. Unlike traditional diagnostic models, Sovaka offers a holistic concierge led experience that bridges the gap between high end diagnostics and personalized health management.
In parallel, the larger healthcare ecosystem is also expanding with many hospitals adding new infrastructure and capabilities. Thus, it is not surprising that diagnostics are also growing alongside this expansion. This further opens opportunities for better integration, stronger linkages and expansion of super specialized testing over time. We are entering FY27 with strong operational momentum, a strengthened digital infrastructure and a clear pathway towards sustaining early to mid teens revenue growth.
I will now hand over the call to Vedic to discuss the financial metrics in more detail.
Ved Prakash Goel — Group Chief Financial Officer and Chief Executive Officer International Business
Thank you Shanko Good evening everyone and a warm welcome. Thank you for joining us today. I will take you through the key financial highlights for the quarter and the full year. 2026. Revenue for Q4FY26 came in at rupees 703 crore compared to rupees 603 crore in the same quarter last year reflecting A growth of 16.6%. Revenue for the full year stands at Rupees 2,763 crore against Rupees 24,61 crore in FY25A growth of 12.2% driven by sample volume growth of 12.9% in Q4 and 10.4% in FY26. Revenue per patient for Q4FY26 is Rupees 956 up by 7.8% compared to Rupees 887 in Q4FY25.
This is mainly due to improvement in test and geographic mix test per patient. For Q4FY26 stood at 3.21 compared to 3.07 in Q4. Last year EBITDA for Q4FY26 came in at Rupees 187 crore compared to Rupees 169 crore in Q4FY25 registering a growth of 10.5% with an EBITDA margin of 26.6%. The full year EBITDA stood at Rupees 752 crore compared to Rupees 696 crore in FY25 registering a growth of 8.2% with a margin of 27.2%. PBT for Q4FY26 came in At Rupees 160 crore compared to Rupees 154 crore in the same period last year with a margin of 22.8%.
Full year PBT stood at rupees 669 crore against rupees 625 crore in FY25 with a margin of 24.2%. Pad for Q4FY26 came in at rupees 132 crore compared to last year 156 crore in Q4 with a pad margin of 18.8%. Full year pad stood at rupees 510 crore against rupees 492 crore in FY25 with a margin Of 18.4%. EPS for the full year is rupees 30.2 compared to rupees 29.2 last year. Please note that the results for this quarter and the full year have some exceptional Item Number one one Time cost of Rupees thirty crore related to the new Labor Code which was accounted for in Q3FY26.
Number two there was an additional benefit of Rupees 41 crore in Q4FY24 on account of voluntary liquidation of Suburban diagnostic. Excluding these one time and exceptional item, EBITDA margin for FY26 is 28.3% with a growth of 12 and a half percent and PAD margin is 19.3% with a growth of 17.9%. We continue to maintain a strong balance sheet with our net cash and cash equivalents standing at rupees 15. 26 crore providing ample liquidity for future growth and M. And A. Our commitment to operational excellence is reflected in our lean working capital which is negative by 26 days.
Further, I am pleased to share that the board of directors have approved the final dividend of 40%. That is rupees four per share. Taking the total dividend for the year to rupees 20.5 per share. That is 280% after adjustment of bonus issue of 1 is to 1 in Q3FY26. With this I conclude my opening remarks and now request the moderator to open the forum for Q and A. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you very much. We will now begin with the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press star and then one on their touchstone phone. If you wish to remove yourself from the question queue, you may press star and then two participants are requested to use handsets while asking a question. Ladies and gentlemen, we will wait for a moment while the question queue assembles. Again you may press star and then one to ask a question. Your first question comes from the line of TOSIF from BNP Pariba.
Please go ahead.
Unidentified Speaker
Good evening and thanks for the opportunity. A couple of question on the recent asset acquisition of Shabazkar in Mumbai. Just wanted to know miss, what is the business mix over there? What’s the share of radio and path are 100% of revenue considering walk in patient. And what has been the rational of acquiring Doctor. Doctor Acquiring this asset.
Questions and Answers:
Shankha Banerjee
Right. So the. I’ll take the last part first. So the reason we have acquired this asset is this is quite an old operating lab. It has got a legacy of over 45 years in that geography. And you know it’s in a micro market in Mumbai where we actually with either Lal Path lab or suburban don’t really have a significant presence. So this is going to add to our a portfolio in that market. Given that you know we are looking at really building our presence strongly in Mumbai and the west region. So that is the reason why we have acquired this entity.
Yes, it is a business which has radiology as well as pathology. But I think the exact mix is not something which makes are readily kind of disclosed. So
Ved Prakash Goel
Largely it is a pathology but having a basic, basic radiology which is sonography and you know X ray but not high end radiology. So largely it is a pathology business.
Unidentified Participant
Understood. And what would be the EBITDA margin profile for this asset?
Ved Prakash Goel
So we, we have not disclosed the EBITDA margin for as of now. So we, we have disclosed this. It’s about a 6 crore kind of turnover. Top line. It’s a small asset.
Unidentified Participant
Okay. And does this asset have scope to further grow in that micro market that Dr. Lal can scale up over there.
Shankha Banerjee
Yeah. So idea is it obviously gives us access to that micro market and you know, over a period of time, you know as we deploy some of our, our products and marketing techniques, we would expect this geography to grow.
Unidentified Participant
That’s helpful. Any color on this quarter volume growth? It looks better compared to previous quarters.
Shankha Banerjee
Yeah. So this quarter volume growth has come at 8.2%. But you know even in the last quarter I had mentioned that you know quarter to quarter even on volume is not really a very, I would say you know a robust way to look at it. But if you look at the annual progression of the patient volume growth, you know we have steadily increased over the last three years and we feel that you know going forward also we should be able to inch up further in terms of patient volume growth with our new, you know, access points, labs and collection network that we are increasing, you know we should see some increase in that number as well.
Unidentified Participant
I’ll get back in the queue.
Shankha Banerjee
Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Ame Chalke from GM Financial. Please go ahead.
Bino Pathiparampil
Yeah, thank you for taking my question and congratulations
Unidentified Participant
On good numbers. So one question I have on the margin side this quarter we have seen a sharp jump in the other other expenses. I understand that second half is generally marketing heavy but even this jump looks much sharper even on 3Q how sustainable it is and if you can also give color on margin for next year in line with that. Thank you.
Ved Prakash Goel
So I mean, I mean this quarter you know we have spent a little bit extra as we said we are investing in the business. We have spent extra amount on our infra uplifting of infra including Delhi NCR as well. Second is we, we are spending more amount on ANP which is you know while we are going or you know deeper or spreading across other geographies. So spending on the ANP is also step up. So these are few of the expenses where we have done in this quarter while for the next year as we we are closing this year, you know 27.2% even after taking the one time charge of 30 crore on account of new labor code.
So we are hopeful for next you know next year also we are looking something similar margin like between 27 to 28%.
Unidentified Participant
Sure. So you don’t expect margin to expand next year what you’re telling.
Ved Prakash Goel
So yeah, so that’s why I’m saying we are, we are expecting this margin in the range of 27, 28%. And the reason because we are Investing in the business, be it infra, be it opening new labs. If you see in last two years we have added 32 labs. This year also we have added 14 labs and we’ll continue to add few more labs next year also. So those investments are going in the business and that’s where we are looking to maintain the similar margins.
Unidentified Participant
Sure. And also I wanted to understand, I believe last two quarters we have also given an indication on the price hike which we have not taken over last three years. Any thoughts on that? If also if it is going to come, shouldn’t that also will help you to improve margins in the coming years?
Shankha Banerjee
So the price hike, we have said that we have completed three years since we took our last price increase. But we also said that we will kind of wait and watch, especially because we had taken a decision to pass on the GST related benefit. So a few quarters we will wait and watch and see how the market is reacting and you know, what position we are in. How is our business growing? How is the competitive situation looking? Like I think basis that maybe we will decide whether we need to take a price increase or not.
But definitely if it is there, it is a few quarters away. It’s not something which is immediately on the cards. And on the margin front, you know, the overall margin that we see 27, 28% we feel is a quite a healthy margin in anything extra that we feel can be generated or if it is available for us, we will invest back into the business for growth.
Unidentified Participant
Sure, sure. Thank you so much, sir. I will join.
Shankha Banerjee
Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Your next question comes from the line of Anshul Agarwal from mk. Please go ahead.
Anshul Agrawal
Hi. Thank you for the opportunity. I just wanted to confirm the FY27 revenue guidance that you mentioned, sir. Is it early to mid teens?
Shankha Banerjee
Yeah, early to mid teens.
Anshul Agrawal
Great. So that, that, that suggests that the volume growth that we have delivered in the current quarter seems to be sustainable for the entire year. Is there any particular geography or channel which is sort of disproportionately contributing to this growth? Your thoughts? And some more color on this. You know, I’m guessing they’re going faster than industry.
Shankha Banerjee
So I think I would not kind of correlate it to a quarter alone because again, if I am, I am talking about, let’s say if you look at the annual trajectory and that’s a much better way to judge because between quarters there could be, you know, some movements and you know, seasonality and other impacts which can happen. So best way to look at is the annual number. If you look at the annual number, the patient volume growth Is at a 5.3% which is better than 4.2 and we have given let’s say 12.2% overall annual revenue growth.
Now if we move up, obviously there is some part of it will be through the patient volume. But we are also seeing samples per patient increasing. So the sample volume growth is another factor. And because of geography and test mix we are seeing a revenue per patient also going up. So all of these three will finally contribute to the overall revenue delivery. So the 8.2% patient volume growth that we see in this quarter is something which I wouldn’t so hastily built into the plan for next year.
Anshul Agrawal
Got it clear. What I wanted to probably understand just a follow up on this was whether realization populations which have improved as well. I understand VG mentioned that it is because of geographical and test mix. This is despite us increasing contribution from Tier 3 geographies. How I’m trying to understand again here whether you know, tier three geographies are dilutive in nature or accretive in nature to our baseline realizations. Yeah. Your thoughts on this?
Shankha Banerjee
I think this is a discussion we’ve been pondering in the last quite a few of these calls and you see close to 39% of our revenues is now coming from tier 3 plus geographies and we have a realization which is in front of you. So obviously it can’t be dilutive. And I think I’ve tried to explain it in the past as well. The way we run our pricing is actually in clusters. So it’s not as if I move from a city like Lucknow to let’s say a city or a town which is smaller nearby, the pricing is going to change.
So the pricing in that cluster is actually the same. So it isn’t as if, you know, if I’m going to a tier 3 market naturally means that pricing is going to be different. The cluster pricing remains the same and parallel. You know, there are even when I’m going into the Tier 3 Tier 4 towns with more access we will be able to sell our health packages, preventive checkups and all of those which even at a revenue on a revenue side you know is or a revenue per patient side is slightly higher revenue. So I think there are those factors there.
So as of now it has not been dilutive and we don’t believe it’s going to be dilutive going forward as well.
Anshul Agrawal
Great. Clear. Could you help me with the CapEx guidance for FY27 and the B2C contribution B2C revenue share in the current year.
Ved Prakash Goel
So Anshul for CapEx. I think we are planning to be in the range of 100220 crore kind of capex for the next year.
Shankha Banerjee
The B2C contribution this year is about 75%.
Anshul Agrawal
Great. Sorry just if I can squeeze in one more veggie. This Capex guidance I would suspect there are incremental capex in addition to sort of the lab infrastructure. Could you call out whether are there any radiology projects planned which are built in this CAPEX number?
Ved Prakash Goel
Yes. So we are, we are planning to have you know one or two radiology center so that that includes India. This 100120 crore is one is maintenance capex obviously another is, you know we are opening like we opened 14 labs in this year. So next year also we are looking 12 to 15 labs another labs and one you know another investment we are making in our decision lab. So so those are the additional investment in in addition to maintenance capex.
Anshul Agrawal
Great. Many thanks. All the very best.
Ved Prakash Goel
Thank you. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Your next question comes from the line of Abdul Kader Puranwala from ICICI Securities. Please go ahead.
Abdulkader Puranwala
Yeah sir. Hi. Thank you for the opportunity. So my first question is with regards to the FY27 revenue growth guidance. So if you look, you know post Covid our run rate has been around 10, 12% kind of a growth and we are guiding for you know early to mid teen. So just wanted to understand you know what are the kind of structural tailwinds you are seeing into the business. And secondly if I look at your FY26 performance it’s been you know, quite broad based across regions. So if you could also highlight, you know when we talk about tier three, tier four, which are these geographies exactly, you know contributing to the growth.
Shankha Banerjee
So you know the, the confidence behind the early to mid teens is driven by the work which has been happening in the last two years. I think the continuous expansion of lab infrastructure and the collection network. If you see over two years we’ve added close to about 32 labs and almost close to 2,000 collection centers. Now we all know that these infrastructure, you know, mature time. So typically you know that that is what is going to be building up for us number one. Number two, you know we have quite a bit of a focus back on Delhi ncr, you know which is our stronghold and we’ve been able to sustain the double digit growth in Delhi NCR and we believe that even going forward we’ll be able to sustain a Double digit growth in Delhi NCR and our west region.
Our suburban business in the last quarter as we had spoken earlier has started picking up. We are seeing better growth trajectory coming back to suburban. So those are really helping us project a number that we should be able to do early to mid teens. So that’s the place you had a second part to the question, what was that exactly?
Abdulkader Puranwala
Yes. So second part to the question was you know when I look at your FY26 growth of 12% and you know on the PPT when I refer to the revenue split, you know across the region it’s quite identical to what it was in fiscal 25. So so you know when we talk about the much of the growth coming from tier two and tier three cities, you know, how does that pan across the regions in which we operate.
Shankha Banerjee
So most of our tier three plus towns are in our stronger brand markets in north and east. So that is where you know most of them are. But there are tier three towns that we operate in west and south as well. So all of them are showing growth. And like I said, you know some of the metro areas like suburban business is also showing a per cup and Delhi NCR also is doing well for us. So it is quite broad based.
Abdulkader Puranwala
Understood. And just one last one if I may. Yeah. So I mean if you could also highlight on the Suvaka centers, you know how many centers we have and you know when we talked about next year capex guidance, you know what are we factoring and you know what is the revenue run rate across the centers now?
Shankha Banerjee
So Sovaka, we’ve launched one center which was launched in January. I think it’s a, it’s a new concep and even I think in the last call I think we had highlighted this that you know we would first like to stabilize the center before we work out the expansion plan. So immediately in the next financial year we aren’t really looking at more centers which are like Sovaka but there are other integrated, you know, high end radiology centers that we’ve opened in Delhi ncr. So we may open in Delhi ncr. We may also try and see if you know the same model can be operated in maybe a tier two town in North.
So you know those are some of the things we will try. But Suvaka is one center and there is no plan to add centers in the next financial year. Next financial is more about building that center up and you know being very sure about the expansion plan after that.
Abdulkader Puranwala
Very clear sir. Thank you,
Shankha Banerjee
Thank you,
Operator
Thank you. Your next Question comes from the line of Binopathy Parampil from Elara Capital. Please go ahead.
Bino Pathiparampil
Hi, good afternoon. Congrats on a good set of numbers. Question on the Middle east war and the raw material price inflation. Do these things have any impacts on our operations in terms of availability or cost of reagents etc?
Ved Prakash Goel
So as of now, no. Because we, we are, you know, obviously we have ample sufficient inventory for next 3, 4 months and we have long term contracts as well. Having said that, I can’t comment on what happened after three, four months. If this war continues, obviously there will be some impact may come on our supply chain because we import most of our reagents and consumables. Also there are linkages with oil and all that stuff. But as of now we are able to maintain. But yes, in future I don’t have visibility right now.
Bino Pathiparampil
Got it. Now just a couple of bookkeeping questions. This entity have acquired. Does that have just one lab or is it a few labs?
Ved Prakash Goel
No, see this Shabazkar is one lab. It’s a single lab.
Bino Pathiparampil
Okay. And the tax rate, consolidated tax rate for the year is a bit lower than previous years. So this 21, 22 you’re looking at or will it swing back to 25 tax rate?
Ved Prakash Goel
No, no, tax rate is similar because I, as I explained in my opening remarks last year we got, you know, some additional benefit due to, you know, suburban liquidation. And that’s why 41 crore was the exceptional benefit which was there last year. But tax rate are same.
Bino Pathiparampil
So the current year rate will stay for next year as well. Because the current year is a bit little below 25, 23 range. Yeah.
Ved Prakash Goel
Yes it is. It is in the same range which is around 25%.
Bino Pathiparampil
Oh thank you,
Ved Prakash Goel
Thank you,
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Rajat Baldeva from Kizuna Wealth. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Yeah. Hi sir. Thank you for giving me the opportunity. So my first question is on the acquisition side which you have acquired named Shabbat center, about 3.3x revenue of 6.11 crore for spending presence in Mumbai. But given that crowd, Mumbai’s crowded lab market like Metropolis as well as there are many standalone maps. So what was the competition intensity there? And is this a merely two hole acquisition or the first of multiple bolt ons with Madasco?
Shankha Banerjee
So I think like I was explaining to one of the questions earlier, so within Mumbai there is a micro market where you know, we don’t have a presence either through the suburban brand or through Lalpat Labs. So this acquisition kind of Fills that gap for us. And you know, every large market has a lot of opportunity and not only is the opportunity because of, you know, there will be large labs present, but there are lot of unorganized labs also in those markets. Plus the overall demand in these markets are also growing.
So the opportunity for growth is available in these markets and we definitely want to participate and grow our business in Mumbai city as well. That’s really the rationale behind the acquisition
Unidentified Participant
On radiology side during that three, four year growth plan, specifically on radiology.
Shankha Banerjee
So our, our plan is a very slow and calibrated as of now on radiology because we are still working on, you know, that how we will be able to replicate one center success to more and you know, we are to work that out on a basis. So it will be very slow and calibrated. We have not set any ambitious targets for us on radiology growth in the next four, five years the way you are suggesting. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Before we take the next question, a reminder to all the participants. You may press STAR and then one to ask a question. Our next question comes from the line of Rishikesh Tule from Tokai Investors. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Hi, good evening. Could you please share how you are prioritizing your investments in new labs versus the old collection centers and also what kind of ROI thresholds and the payback periods that you typically look at when you are trying to expand in these.
Shankha Banerjee
So I didn’t get your question. Investment in lab versus collection center. What was the question?
Unidentified Participant
Okay, let me step back. So how are you going to, so let’s talk about capex. Right? You talked about how your there is maintenance capex and growth capex. Could you please elaborate on your growth capex, how you’re going to stand it.
Shankha Banerjee
So I think we’ve talked about it. So there are new satellite labs that we are going to open up, right? Then there is, you know, maybe a few high end radiology setups that we will, we will, we will do. Plus we have acquired, you know, an asset to set up a precision diagnostic lab so that you know, which has kind of high end complex testing and those kind of machines, equipment, etc will be there. So all of these are part of our, part of our CAPEX plan for next year.
Unidentified Participant
All right, great. Thank you.
Shankha Banerjee
Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Once again, to ask a question, please press star and 1. Our next question comes from the line of Prakash Kaparia from Kaparia Financial Services. Please go ahead.
Prakash Kapadia
Yeah, thanks for the opportunity. Congrats to the team. You know, after A long time we’ve seen you know, growth being broad based across most of our geographies on an annual basis. So the good sign is Delhi NCR has really done well this year. So that’s good. So if you could give some insights, is it you know, focusing on existing customers, some quicker turnaround, high end test what is you know leading to Delhi NCR growth. And you know if I look at the quarter growth is finally, you know come above 15% now channel check suggest, you know it is lesser competitive intensity across the board.
There are you know selective price hikes in some of the packages which is also, you know leading to this growth. So you know you mentioned in your remarks Anka K. You are pretty confident of you know growth being mid teens. So we should expect higher growth in suburban and you know some of the other geographies which is just started to continue which will give us you know, steady state, 14, 15% growth in the coming quarters. Is that the aspiration? We are working
Shankha Banerjee
Right. Thank you Prakash for the question. So I think firstly on Delhi ncr I think it’s a, it’s a lot to do with maybe all the things that you said because you know we’ve got a very strong brand equity and presence. So we have just tried to activate all our channels including our own infrastructure, our partners as well as you know, improved our service levels. I think I had mentioned in one of the previous calls we’ve also added you know, a few testing locations in Delhi and Seattle to improve the turnaround time and a lot of work is happening on the specialized portfolio as well.
So you know it’s an all round effort which is carrying on and we are seeing results and that’s how Delhi NCR growth at double digits is getting sustained. Going to the other question about guidance for next year. So, so the, so when we say early, early to mid teens I am talking of a range which could be between 13 to 15 and and basically you know, annually we have already seen that we’ve been able to deliver 12, 12.2
Unidentified Participant
And 1/4,
Shankha Banerjee
1/4 which is, which is quite good the last quarter but like I said one quarter is not the way we kind of judge the business. But there are a few things which are working for us. So our lab and network expansion that we have been able to deliver that’s going to cumulate each year as we move forward that cumulative benefit will flow through Delhi NCR growth is sustained and we also are seeing suburban business now picking up in terms of growth rates. So all of these are going to be contributing and helping us add a few percentage points to our growth rate.
Prakash Kapadia
Great. And suburban, any sense if you could give. Is it going to be package driven? Is it going to be individualized driven? And you know, when we talk of the overall 28% revenue coming from packages, is suburban also included in this or it is just the swift of Dr. Lal which comes under this in terms of the contributions?
Shankha Banerjee
No, no. Even suburban packages are included in that.
Prakash Kapadia
Okay. Okay. So suburban also has, you know, some of these packages and that’s a decent portion of suburban revenues. Is that right? Understanding?
Shankha Banerjee
Yeah, it is. It is a decent portion of suburban revenues as well.
Prakash Kapadia
Okay. Okay, fine. Thank
Bino Pathiparampil
You. All the best. I’ll join back if I have more questions. Thank you.
Shankha Banerjee
Thank you. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Your next question comes from the line of Aniket from Smiths. Please go ahead. Aniket, your line is unmuted. Please proceed with your question.
Unidentified Participant
Yeah, thank you. The opportunity, I guess in starting you mentioned the acquisition cost of Shabaskar. So can you please repeat that?
Bino Pathiparampil
What of Sabaska? Okay,
Ved Prakash Goel
So total deal size is about 20cr for this, this asset.
Unidentified Participant
Okay. And what would be the capex for overall? Capex for FY27 and 28.
Ved Prakash Goel
So as I said 100220 crore for next year.
Unidentified Participant
Okay. Okay. Yeah, that’s it.
Ved Prakash Goel
Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Rishi Modi from RDM Advisory llp. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Hi Shankar, can you hear me?
Shankha Banerjee
Yes, please.
Unidentified Participant
Shankar. Just wanted to get your understanding on suburban. You mentioned that a large part of the growth contributor has been suburban. I understand one would be that operations normalize after that software update that you all were talking about. So there would be a portion of lost revenue which is turned normal. But beyond that also is there growth which has come from either market share gains or like what has led to that? If there is significant growth from that piece as well.
Shankha Banerjee
Yeah, so I don’t think I mentioned it’s a significant growth from suburban. I think what I’m saying is that the growth has been very broad based and which includes, you know, suburban business had not been really doing very well for one or two, you know, about three odd quarters. So I think that’s something which we are now seeing in the last quarter coming back. And therefore, you know, that momentum we will be able to carry forward into our next year, you know, business as well.
Unidentified Participant
All right, so could you just help me with the numbers for suburban revenue like this quarter versus Q3 and last year Q4. So I just get an idea of what Runway to expect for FY27 on Suburban.
Ved Prakash Goel
Rishi, we are not now reporting separately these numbers. These are all part of our west number which has been given in the split geographical split because now suburban is no more a separate entity. It is merged with main parent company.
Unidentified Participant
Okay. All right, I’ll pick it up from the western region numbers. All right, thank you.
Operator
Thank you. Your next question comes from the line of Rahul Salvi from Franklin Templeton. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Yeah, thanks for the opportunity. I had a question on improvement in volumes if any are we seeing because of say the GLP1 launch in the last 40 days. So is there any patient volume accretion happening on that front? And which are the tests basically which are these patients are choosing? Any insights on that will be helpful.
Shankha Banerjee
So the patient volume growth to a certain extent is also a factor of the improved collection network and the lab network that has been put into place. It is definitely not driven through glp. And like I said that you know this is just one quarter performance because there are sometimes, you know the base numbers can be slightly different in different quarters. So the best way to look at the patient volume growth is at an analyzed level. So which is better than last year. And we believe that you know, going forward we should be able to do slightly better on the patient volume number as well in the next financial year.
Unidentified Participant
But as I understand you will not attribute the FY27 growth even to a slightest extent to patients who are opting say for GLP and the doctors prescribing them those tests. Right.
Shankha Banerjee
So I would not ascribe any differential impact due to due to glp.
Unidentified Participant
Thank you. That is helpful.
Operator
Thank you. Your next question comes from the line of Gaurav T from Ambit. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Yeah, Hi, good evening and thank you. So question is on the incorporation of the subsidiary in Dubai uae. So can you share what are your plans from a you know build out business, build out in these geographies and what you know, percentage of capital or capex of 120 crores if penny is allocated to this geography as well in FY27.
Ved Prakash Goel
Yeah, thanks Gaurav for asking this. I mean this is in line with our, you know as I mentioned in on the last call as well that we are making enroad to our international expansion. It’s not something immediate but over a period of let’s next three, two years, three to five years we are looking to expand few of the geography. Right now we have on ground presence in Nepal and Bangladesh but we are looking some of the geography or new geography on ground operations, including Middle east. And this is, this incorporation is in line with that extension plan.
Unidentified Participant
So thank you for that. So would, you know, the strategy be open to, you know, you have, you know, significant cash and balance sheet. Would you know, inorganic opportunities be also in explored in, you know, the Middle east or Dubai UAE markets over the next, you know, two to three years? You would you be open to that?
Shankha Banerjee
So right now I think the idea is to incorporate a holding company kind of or a company in Dubai which can also maybe operate as a holding company for the region. Now, you know, in terms of our expansion plan M and a opportunity can also be evaluated. That is always on the cards. But yeah, I think both organic and inorganic can be looked at.
Unidentified Participant
Got it, got it. Some accounting questions. So I think, I think we, you have kind of, you know, reallocated some costs from I think these collection centers or employee to other expenses this quarter. So what was the primary reason for that?
Ved Prakash Goel
So, so this, this cost was in the nature of, you know, courier and transportation cost which was grouped under employee benefit which has been regrouped as per the nature of the expenses. So this is the cost which has been regrouped from employee benefit to other expenses.
Unidentified Participant
So if you look at the reclassified employee expense, you know, for Q, we’re seeing a jump of almost 19%. Is that you know, some part allocated to, you know, the revision in the labor code and you know, restructuring of, you know, the compensation structures?
Ved Prakash Goel
Yeah, so regrouping is nothing to do with this new labor code. But having said that, As I mentioned, 30 crore is the additional cost which is reflected in this year on account of new labor code.
Unidentified Participant
That was in Q3. If I just look at employee expenses in Q4 this year which was, you know, close to 129 crores versus 108 crores in Q4 last year. So that’s almost a growth of 19%.
Ved Prakash Goel
This is because, you know, as we mentioned that we have added intra which is 14 labs. And this is more towards the end of Q3 and Q4 mostly. And plus we have started operations in Swaka. So those are the, you know, expenses which is also factored in here in Q4.
Unidentified Participant
Sure. Sorry, last question. You know, just a previous, you know, colleague or peer had also asked this. So this quarter, you know, tax expense or tax rate is closer to 17. So any, any benefit that we realized this quarter on the effective tax rate.
Ved Prakash Goel
So there is a reversal of deferred tax in this quarter on account of you know, on account of some income tax assessment has been done which, which has been, you know, we got the refund and accordingly we have reversed. But as I mentioned, tax rate is same, which is, which is around 25%. Nothing changing. No.
Unidentified Participant
Thank you. All the best. I’ll go back to Q.
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Hafiz Patel from Ask Investment Managers. Please go ahead.
Vamsi Hota
Hi sir. Congratulations on the good set of numbers. So my first question is around the ongoing transition of suburban connection centers from in house to a franchisee led model. So to what extent has that been completed? And secondly in terms of the EBITDA margin profile of suburban, I think the last quoted figure was somewhere around the high teens range. So has that kind of, you know, is that kind of improving towards the upward trajectory and kind of reaching the company level margins or is there further scope of improvement there?
Shankha Banerjee
So on the collection network now I think the transitions that were to be made have mostly been done. So now the suburban expansion is also happening mostly through a franchise setup. However there will be certain geographies where there will be company owned collection network also that we will consider. But primarily that whole transition towards having more centers through franchisees is already kind of underway and mostly done. So that’s one I think on the margin maybe Ved can answer.
Ved Prakash Goel
So on margins, as I mentioned, we are not, you know, tracking separately as you know, because this is not no more separate entity but you know, margins obviously for different geography, different margin structure even let’s suppose west as a whole. If we compare Delhi NCR vs West obviously margins are different but in spite of that we are looking margins on overall basis as a company is in between of you know, whatever 27 to 28% margin.
Vamsi Hota
Understood sir. So just a small clarification there. So I mean why you may not disclose this specific, you know, number there but the margin that you kind of have on the west geography, has suburban reached up to that scale or is there further scope for improvement? If you could just add on that.
Ved Prakash Goel
No. So as I said, I mean you know, margins for west including suburban, there are still rooms to improve because obviously it’s not one time activity, it’s ongoing where we continuously have some levers where we can optimize our cost and that’s why improvement in margins for a few geographies are possible.
Vamsi Hota
Understood sir. Thank you and all the best.
Ved Prakash Goel
Thank you. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. As there are no further questions, I now hand the conference over to the management for closing comments.
Ved Prakash Goel
Thank you all for your participation. Today and for your continued trust in our vision. We trust we have addressed all your questions comprehensively. If you require further clarification or have additional queries, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We look forward to engaging with you again next quarter. Thank you once again and have a good evening. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you on behalf of Dr. Lal Patlabs. That concludes this conference. Thank you for everyone for joining us. And you may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.