Celltrion said Wednesday it posted record first-quarter results, with consolidated revenue of over 1.14 trillion won ($783 million) and operating profit of 321.9 billion won.
Revenue rose 36 percent on-year, while operating profit surged 115.5 percent, with the operating margin improving to 28.1 percent.
All 11 biosimilar products currently on the market maintained stable revenue streams, while high-margin new products drove growth, with sales from the segment jumping 67 percent on-year.
These newer products generated a combined 581.2 billion won in revenue in the first quarter alone, supported by major tender wins in Europe and reimbursement coverage in the US. Their share of total revenue expanded to 60 percent.
Omlyclo, launched in Europe in September last year, quickly gained market traction, achieving market shares of 98 percent in Denmark, 80 percent in Spain and 70 percent in the Netherlands within four months.
Growth in the US has also accelerated, with Zymfentra — the world’s only subcutaneous formulation of infliximab — recording more than a threefold increase in prescriptions on-year and reaching record monthly levels.
On the back of this momentum, the company is expected to exceed its full-year targets of 5.3 trillion won in revenue and 1.8 trillion won in operating profit.
Further upside is expected in the second half, as recently launched high-margin products expand into additional markets under patent settlements. New US launches this year, including subcutaneous formulations such as Aptozma and Omlyclo, are also expected to provide additional growth drivers.
“The strong growth in the typically slow first quarter was driven by the full-scale market penetration of high-margin products,” a company official said. “With prescriptions expanding and tender wins increasing for new products, earnings growth is expected to accelerate further going forward.”
jwjeon7625@heraldcorp.com
