[This Week's Focus Stock] Pharmicell: Driven by AI, Powered by Stem Cells

Record-High Half-Year Results Achieved
AI Accelerator Materials Drive Surge in Sales
Anticipation Builds for Stem Cell Therapy Clinical Outcomes
Balanced Growth Expected Across Biomedical and Biochemical Divisions

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Pharmicell is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of stem cell therapies. The company operates two divisions: Biomedicine and Biochemical.

The Biomedicine division focuses on developing stem cell therapies as its core business, and continues to strengthen its technological capabilities related to cell therapies by leveraging the expertise in cultivation, manufacturing, and quality control accumulated during the development process. Utilizing this technological foundation, Pharmicell is engaged in the contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) business for cell therapies. The company also sells cosmetics containing stem cell culture medium under the "ByPharmicellLab" and "Playcell" brands.

Pharmicell acquired IDB Chem, a producer of active pharmaceutical ingredients and precision chemical products, in 2012 and merged with it in 2013. The Biochemical division produces pharmaceutical intermediates such as methoxy polyethylene glycol (mPEG) and nucleosides. In addition, the division manufactures electronic materials with excellent electrical properties, such as low dielectric constant and low dielectric loss, as well as eco-friendly phosphorus-based flame retardants and other industrial precision chemical products.

Profits Surge Alongside AI Industry Growth

In the first half of this year, Pharmicell posted cumulative sales of 53.8 billion won and operating profit of 16.5 billion won, achieving its highest-ever half-year performance. By business segment, the Biochemical division recorded 52.6 billion won in sales, while the Biomedicine division posted 1.2 billion won.

Within the Biochemical division, sales of low dielectric constant electronic materials reached 29.5 billion won, up 230% from the same period last year. As the artificial intelligence (AI) industry grows rapidly, demand for low dielectric materials is soaring.

Copper-clad laminates (CCL) using low dielectric materials are utilized in AI accelerators. Pharmicell's low dielectric materials are supplied to global AI semiconductor companies through major domestic conglomerates. Yang Seungsu, a researcher at Meritz Securities, stated, "The full-stack server rack (NVL72) introduced by Nvidia for the first time this year is rapidly gaining traction as it proves its cost-performance efficiency over time, leading to a surge in demand." He added, "Pharmicell's clients are essentially operating at full capacity to meet CCL demand." He continued, "It is highly likely that this full-capacity operation will continue through the fourth quarter of this year and into the first half of next year. Pharmicell is currently working to improve process efficiency in the first half of next year," and "plans to further expand production capacity."

Sales of active pharmaceutical ingredients are also steadily increasing. Sales of mPEG, supplied to multinational pharmaceutical companies, have already surpassed last year's annual performance in the first half of this year. A Pharmicell representative said, "Overseas supply of active pharmaceutical ingredients is increasing," and "We expect to maintain strong performance in the second half of this year as well."

Pharmicell's active pharmaceutical ingredients are gaining increasing recognition overseas. Last month, the company participated in 'CPHI Frankfurt 2025' in Frankfurt, Germany, where it highlighted mPEG and nucleosides as its core products. It also showcased its nucleic acid materials portfolio, including deoxynucleoside triphosphate (dNTP), nucleoside triphosphate (NTP), and newly developed nucleoside lineups. CPHI is one of the world's largest exhibitions covering the entire pharmaceutical and biotechnology value chain.

Thanks to the strong performance of the Biochemical division, Pharmicell's corporate value is growing rapidly. Since the beginning of this year, Pharmicell's stock price has risen by 127%, and its market capitalization has surpassed 1.1 trillion won.

Biomedicine Division, Anticipating Results from Continued Investment

Pharmicell expects that its consistent investment in the Biomedicine division will soon yield concrete results. As the first company in Korea to commercialize a stem cell therapy, Pharmicell has accumulated manufacturing, clinical, and regulatory response capabilities. The phase 3 clinical trial for the liver cirrhosis stem cell therapy "Cellgram-LC" has completed about 80% of patient enrollment. The company also released research results showing that patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis who received Pharmicell's stem cell therapy had up to an 86% reduction in five-year cumulative mortality risk. The likelihood of success in the phase 3 clinical trial has increased. Upon completion of the trial, Pharmicell will have two stem cell therapies in its portfolio, further solidifying its leading position in the field of stem cell therapy.

The chronic kidney disease stem cell therapy "Cellgram-CKD" demonstrated safety in a phase 1 clinical trial last year. The company is preparing to obtain approval for advanced regenerative medicine clinical research early next year. The erectile dysfunction therapy "Cellgram-ED" has completed phase 2 clinical trials and is under follow-up observation.

Based on its good manufacturing practice (GMP) facilities and years of production experience, Pharmicell has established a system capable of consistently manufacturing high-quality stem cell therapies. The company also possesses a large number of administration cases and long-term monitoring data.

In a long-term follow-up study of patients who received Pharmicell's stem cell therapy, the company observed a reduction in aging-related genes and identified rejuvenation patterns in multiple genes. Pharmicell is continuing research and development to acquire technology that can quantitatively measure the biological age of cells and predict the anti-aging effects of treatments. The company is also preparing to develop this into a patient-specific rejuvenation therapy platform by combining it with AI-based analysis.

Globally, the aging population is increasing, and the number of patients with chronic and intractable diseases is also on the rise. This is why demand for cell therapies is expected to grow in the long term. Pharmicell is responding to changes in medical demand based on its experience in developing therapies and clinical data. Investment in the cell and gene therapy sector is increasing worldwide. The company expects to see various growth opportunities, such as collaborating with global pharmaceutical companies on technology, expanding clinical trials, and advancing its platform.

In the field of stem cell therapy, clinical trial results have a significant impact on regulatory approval and the continuation of development. If results differ from expectations, development strategies may change or schedules may be delayed. These are factors that can affect business viability and market evaluation. Even after commercialization, actual demand for stem cell therapies can vary depending on external factors such as insurance coverage, patient accessibility, and cost-effectiveness assessments.

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