Sales Up 63.4% Year-on-Year, Operating Profit Down 24.4%
Celltrion recorded its highest-ever performance, driven by strong sales of autoimmune disease treatments such as 'Remsima'.
On the 25th, Celltrion announced through its business performance disclosure that it recorded consolidated sales of 3.5573 trillion KRW and operating profit of 492 billion KRW last year. Sales increased by 63.4% compared to the previous year, while operating profit decreased by 24.4%. The decline in operating profit is interpreted as being affected by amortization costs and product development expenses related to the merger.
In the fourth quarter, sales reached 1.0636 trillion KRW, a 178% increase year-on-year, due to balanced growth of bio products and the occurrence of contract manufacturing organization (CMO) sales, surpassing 1 trillion KRW in a single quarter for the first time. Operating profit for the same period grew by 967.4% to 196.4 billion KRW, thanks to the easing of cost and expense burdens related to the merger.
Remsima Sales Surpass 1 Trillion KRW, Becoming a Blockbuster
In the core biopharmaceutical business, existing products such as Remsima, Truxima, and Herzuma showed stable growth. New products including RemsimaSC (U.S. brand name: Gymsentra), Uplima, and Vegzelma all set annual sales records, achieving annual sales of 3.1085 trillion KRW, a 57.7% increase compared to the previous year. Notably, the sales proportion of new products rapidly increased from 26.1% to about 38.4%, becoming a significant pillar of sales.
By region, influence and sales expansion in the two major global markets, Europe and North America, stood out. In Europe, sales of new products accelerated, recording annual sales of 1.5468 trillion KRW. In North America, stable performance of Inflectra was accompanied by sales growth of Truxima, Uplima, Gymsentra, and Vegzelma, pushing annual sales beyond 1 trillion KRW.
By product, Remsima surpassed 1 trillion KRW in annual sales for the first time with its intravenous (IV) formulation, establishing itself as a genuine global blockbuster product. According to market research firm IQVIA, Remsima's market share in Europe reached 62% as of the third quarter last year. Including RemsimaSC, it holds overwhelming market shares in major European countries: 88.8% in the UK, 80% in France, 75.8% in Spain, and 73.8% in Germany. RemsimaSC alone holds a 25% market share in the EU5 (the five major European pharmaceutical markets).
In the U.S., Gymsentra, sold as a new drug, has been listed on formularies covering about 90% of the U.S. insurance market through partnerships with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). Truxima maintains a solid market share in the 30% range in both Europe and the U.S., while Herzuma holds a 72% share in Japan and leads the market with a 29% share in Europe.
"Cost of Sales Ratio, Nearly 60% in 2023, Expected to Drop to the 20% Range This Year"
Celltrion plans to continue both quantitative and qualitative growth this year by strengthening its foundation through new portfolio launches, cost ratio improvements, and cost efficiency. In particular, the cost of sales ratio is expected to improve rapidly this year due to the depletion of high-cost inventory, expanded production at the third plant, and the end of amortization of development costs for existing products.
Celltrion stated, "The cost of sales ratio, which was nearly 63% in the fourth quarter of 2023 immediately after the merger, has decreased to about 45% within a year," adding, "With the increasing proportion of new products with low manufacturing costs, the cost of sales ratio is expected to drop to the 20% range by the fourth quarter of this year." They also said, "With the end of amortization related to the merger and leverage effects from external growth, significant increases in both operating profit and operating profit margin are expected this year."
Sales are also expected to increase significantly this year due to product expansion. With a lineup of 11 biopharmaceutical products completed, Celltrion aims to achieve annual sales of 5 trillion KRW by leveraging the stable growth of existing products and accelerating market expansion of new products.
Product Portfolio Expanded to 22
Celltrion is also focusing on discovering new growth engines to sustain rapid growth. First, the core biosimilar portfolio of 11 products, targeted for this year, has already been achieved in Korea and Europe. The combined global market size of these 11 products, either currently sold or approved, amounts to approximately 150 trillion KRW.
Going forward, Celltrion plans to continue steady research and development (R&D) investment, developing biosimilars for four products?Ocrevus, Cosentyx, Keytruda, and Darzalex?as well as seven undisclosed pipelines, aiming to complete a total of 22 biosimilar portfolios by 2030.
Celltrion has also actively entered new drug development. Recently, it announced a detailed plan to submit investigational new drug (IND) applications for a total of 13 new drug candidates by 2028, and in fact, just two weeks after the announcement, it submitted the IND for its first antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) new drug, 'CT-P70', accelerating development.
Additionally, Celltrion recently established its subsidiary, Celltrion Biosolutions, to actively enter the contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) business. Celltrion Biosolutions plans to provide end-to-end pharmaceutical services to bio companies and startups based on proprietary technology that maximizes production efficiency and quality, as well as know-how in factory design and operation.
A Celltrion official said, "Last year was the first year of the merged Celltrion corporation, realizing external growth through global prescription expansion of our core biopharmaceutical business," adding, "This year will be a year of achieving both quantitative and qualitative growth through new portfolio launches, cost improvements, and cost efficiency."
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