[Click eStock] "Samsung Biologics Expected to Slightly Miss 4Q Earnings Forecast"

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] Hana Financial Investment maintained its 'Buy' rating and target price of 1,150,000 KRW for Samsung Biologics on the 7th, expecting the company's Q4 earnings last year to slightly miss market consensus.

Jae-kyung Park, a researcher at Hana Financial Investment, said, "Samsung Biologics' Q4 consolidated sales are expected to reach 435.3 billion KRW, up 16% year-on-year, and operating profit to 120.2 billion KRW, up 29.9%, slightly below the consensus (sales 446.3 billion KRW, operating profit 149.5 billion KRW)." These results represent decreases of 3.4% and 28.2%, respectively, compared to the previous quarter. Sales are expected to slightly decline quarter-on-quarter due to a slight decrease in utilization rate and a reduction in production batches caused by an increase in product mix. Operating profit margin is expected to fall from 37.1% in the previous quarter to 27.6% due to increased commission fees and labor costs during new business expansion, as well as year-end bonuses at about 150% of the monthly base salary.

This year's performance is projected at sales of 1.8797 trillion KRW and operating profit of 602.2 billion KRW, representing increases of 20.6% and 13.9%, respectively, compared to the previous year. Researcher Park stated, "Despite the regular maintenance of Plant 2, performance improvement is expected through increased production batches by optimizing batch operation efficiency at Plant 3 and recognition of delayed sales due to IFRS accounting standards." He added, "Plant 4 will begin partial operation from Q4 this year, with full performance reflection starting in 2023."

Park also noted, "This year, key points to watch include the disclosure of specific plans related to the 2nd campus Plants 5 and 6, and the expansion of the contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) business into cell and gene therapy modalities."

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