[Click eStock] "SK Biopharmaceuticals Sees Increase in Xcopri Prescriptions"

On November 20, Hana Securities analyzed that SK Biopharmaceuticals outperformed market expectations in the third quarter of this year. The target stock price was raised from 150,000 won to 160,000 won.

In the third quarter of this year, SK Biopharmaceuticals recorded sales of 191.7 billion won and operating profit of 70.1 billion won. These figures represent increases of 40.4% and 262.4%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.

Kim Seona, a researcher at Hana Securities, stated, "This strong performance is unlikely to be a temporary phenomenon," and explained, "The number of prescriptions last month increased by 7.7% compared to the previous month."

She continued, "We expect the number of prescriptions in the fourth quarter to increase by 1.7% to 7.3% compared to the third quarter this year," adding, "The estimated annual sales of Xcopri are likely to reach the upper end of previous forecasts."

She further estimated, "In the fourth quarter of this year, sales will reach 199.9 billion won and operating profit will be 37.8 billion won," analyzing that "the 46.1% decrease in operating profit compared to the previous quarter is due to the consideration of 490 billion won in selling and administrative expenses."

Researcher Kim noted, "With pharmaceutical tariffs capped at 15%, external risks have eased," and predicted, "Based on the current prescription growth rate, we expect steady increases next year as well." She added, "The higher-than-expected exchange rate is also a positive factor for sales and profit forecasts. Recently, SK Biopharmaceuticals obtained marketing approval in Korea and is expanding its market by applying for approvals in China, Japan, and other countries."

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