[Click eStock] "SK바사, COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Trial Announcement, Post-IPO Stock Price Momentum"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ji Yeon-jin] Meritz Securities expects a significant rise in SK Bioscience's stock price following its listing on the 18th.

Jiha Kim, a researcher at Meritz Securities, stated, "As a COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer, SK Bioscience can receive a valuation premium. With abundant momentum such as inclusion in the KOSPI 200 after listing and the announcement of Phase 1 results for a third-party developed COVID-19 vaccine, we believe there is substantial upside potential for the stock price post-listing."

SK Bioscience was established in July 2018 through a physical division of SK Chemicals' vaccine business division. The confirmed public offering price for its listing on the KOSPI on this day is the upper band price of 65,000 KRW. Based on the offering price, the market capitalization is 4.9725 trillion KRW, and the freely tradable shares after listing account for 11.6%.

The company operates in vaccine distribution and sales, as well as CMO (Contract Manufacturing Organization) and CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) businesses. It has signed CMO/CDMO contracts for AstraZeneca and Novavax COVID-19 vaccines and a license agreement for domestic supply of Novavax vaccines. Considering the global average unit price and profit structure, the CMO/CDMO business is expected to generate 496.9 billion KRW in revenue this year and 739.5 billion KRW next year. There is also a prospect for additional orders amid the current vaccine supply shortage.

Additionally, the company is developing two synthetic antigen-type COVID-19 vaccine candidates (NBP2001, GBP510), currently in Phase 1 and Phase 1/2 clinical stages, respectively. They plan to conduct a global Phase 3 clinical trial for one product within this year, with Phase 1 results expected to be announced in the first half of the year. Furthermore, they have signed a joint development agreement with Sanofi for next-generation pneumococcal vaccine development and are currently conducting a global Phase 2 clinical trial. Their goal is to develop a 'Best in-Class' product in the approximately 7 trillion KRW pneumococcal vaccine market.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.