[IPO Spotlight] Neuromeka Accelerates Collaborative Robot Supply to SMEs

Issuance of 1.5 Million New Shares... Plan to Raise 21 Billion Won
Expanding Production Capacity to Produce 18,000 Units Annually
Demand Forecast for Institutional Investors on 29th-30th

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] NeuroMeca, a collaborative robot manufacturer, plans to expand its production facilities and broaden its collaborative robot lineup using funds raised through its initial public offering (IPO).

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on the 14th, NeuroMeca will raise 21 billion KRW by issuing 1.5 million new shares. The expected price range per share is 14,000 to 16,900 KRW, and a book-building process targeting institutional investors will be conducted from the 29th to the 30th to finalize the offering price. Public subscription is scheduled for two days starting from the 6th of next month, with a goal to list on the KOSDAQ market by mid-next month. Daishin Securities is acting as the lead underwriter.

Founded in 2013, NeuroMeca holds advanced competitiveness in robot control technology, stabilization technology, and teaching technology. It has proven its high technological capability through comparative evaluations with major domestic and international competitors. As of last month, the company has filed a total of 74 technology patents, with 30 patents registered. The ratio of research and development expenses to sales was 96.34% in 2020, 16.53% in 2021, and 16.82% in the first half of 2022.

Based on its advanced technology, NeuroMeca has established a diverse lineup including the collaborative robot 'Indy,' the autonomous mobile robot (AMR) 'Mobi' equipped with autonomous navigation capabilities, the delta robot 'D' optimized for high-speed logistics automation, and the collaborative industrial robot 'Icon.' The company provides subscription-based collaborative robot automation services and industrial Internet of Things (IoT)-based remote maintenance management services for collaborative robots to help various small and medium-sized enterprises increase productivity.

In the first half of this year, NeuroMeca recorded sales of 4.6 billion KRW and an operating loss of 2.3 billion KRW. Sales increased by 51.3% compared to the same period last year, while the loss size expanded.

Daishin Securities selected four companies?RaonTech, Ajinextek, CowinTech, and Samick THK?as comparables to determine an appropriate offering price for NeuroMeca. Based on the average price-to-earnings ratio (PER) of 30.41 times for these four companies, the per-share valuation was calculated at 24,054 KRW. This was based on the estimated net income for 2024 and considered an annual discount rate. Daishin Securities explained that the estimated net income for 2024 was applied, anticipating the point when product development and full-scale profit generation would occur. Applying a discount rate of 29.33% to 41.39% to the per-share valuation, the expected offering price range was set between 14,000 and 16,900 KRW.

The raised funds will be used to expand automated production facilities to ensure smooth supply of collaborative and service robots. Using the public offering proceeds, the company plans to expand its Pohang production base and increase production equipment, expecting to produce 18,000 robots annually.

According to data from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), the global robot market size reached approximately 23.9 trillion KRW in 2020. Industrial robots accounted for 19.8 trillion KRW, and collaborative robots accounted for 4 trillion KRW. The global robot market is projected to grow at an average annual rate of 11.8% to reach 38.9 trillion KRW by 2025.

Park Jong-hoon, CEO of NeuroMeca, said, "Collaborative robots have recently been recognized as a core technology for improving productivity in small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises." He added, "NeuroMeca is expanding its business not only to small and medium enterprises but also to mass production processes of large corporations, food and beverage (F&B), medical, and research fields." He continued, "We will continue sustainable growth by developing automation platforms and inter-machine services."