Huons, 436.9 Billion KRW in Sales Last Year... Operating Profit Down 8%

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Huons continued its sales growth compared to the previous year. However, operating profit slightly decreased due to increased research and development (R&D) expenses.

Huons announced on the 16th that its consolidated annual sales last year reached 436.91139 billion KRW, a 7.4% increase compared to the previous year. This sales figure continued the record for the highest sales ever. However, operating profit was 49.6027 billion KRW and net profit was 34.61271 billion KRW, showing decreases of 8.4% and 38.8%, respectively.

Based on separate financial statements, sales also grew by 10.2% to 403.6292 billion KRW, but operating profit and net profit decreased by 8% and 28%, respectively, to 48.0277 billion KRW and 35.72448 billion KRW.

Huons evaluated that this sales growth was largely driven by the health functional food business, including the women's menopause probiotic "Elnubi Menolacto," which showed significant growth, along with stable sales increases in prescription drugs and contract manufacturing businesses.

Elnubi Menolacto alone recorded sales of 37.1 billion KRW, achieving explosive growth of 115% compared to the previous year. The continuous glucose monitor "Dexcom G6," which lowered its price in July last year to acquire new users, also supported growth. Prescription drugs grew by 7%, with the ophthalmology division showing remarkable growth, and anesthetics and cardiovascular products also growing steadily. The contract manufacturing business showed 8% growth due to increased orders for eye drops.

However, regarding the decrease in operating profit and net profit despite sales growth, Huons explained that advertising expenses and commission fees increased during the expansion of the health functional food business, and costs for securing mid- to long-term growth momentum, such as increased R&D expenses for expanding the pharmaceutical pipeline, were reflected. Additionally, in terms of net profit, the base effect of valuation gains and losses on financial assets recognized in profit or loss without cash outflow was reflected. The valuation gains from the listing of invested companies in 2020 were recorded as losses in the financial statements last year due to a decline in market prices.

Um Ki-an, CEO of Huons, said, “Although the market environment remains challenging due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, sales increased evenly across all business sectors, achieving the highest performance ever and demonstrating Huons’ business resilience. We will continue to expand investments for sustainable growth and quickly respond to changing market trends.”

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