ST GenBio achieved triple-digit growth in operating profit in the third quarter of this year, driven by strong performance in its oligonucleotide new drug CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) business. The expansion of high value-added product sales also significantly improved profitability.
According to the company on October 29, ST GenBio posted third-quarter revenue of 81.9 billion won, up 32.7% year-on-year. Operating profit surged 141.6% to 14.7 billion won, and net profit rose 49.2% to 20.4 billion won. The operating margin improved to 18.0%, nearly doubling compared to the previous year.
The main driver was the growth of the oligonucleotide CDMO business. Revenue from the oligonucleotide segment reached 68.6 billion won, a 92.9% increase year-on-year. In particular, the full-scale shipment of commercial volumes recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) led to strong quarterly results. Sales from clinical projects also grew in tandem, resulting in improvements in both volume and unit price.
The product portfolio is also becoming more diversified. Dependence on existing blood cancer and hyperlipidemia projects has decreased, while multiple pipelines-such as chronic hepatitis B (22.2 billion won), rare cardiovascular diseases (25.6 billion won), hyperlipidemia (7.9 billion won), and arteriosclerosis (7.2 billion won)-have become key revenue sources, reducing volatility.
Favorable foreign exchange effects also contributed to the results. With exports accounting for over 90% of sales, the current won-dollar exchange rate remains higher than the annual guidance rate (1,300-1,350 won) set at the beginning of the year, suggesting that sales growth momentum will continue through year-end. As of the end of last month, the order backlog stood at approximately 278 billion won.
The small molecule segment saw a decline in revenue as the shipment schedule for major projects was postponed to the fourth quarter. Although there was a 99.1% year-on-year decrease, the order backlog remains at around 53 billion won, indicating the pipeline is being maintained. The mRNA segment generated initial R&D-based CDMO revenue of about 1.4 billion won.
Overseas CRO subsidiary revenue reached 9.5 billion won. The company is strengthening its vertically integrated structure from early research to commercialization based on its combined CRO and CDMO business model.
Facility investment has also begun in earnest. The second oligonucleotide building began early operations for the production of some clinical samples in July, and the resulting depreciation expense of 1.5 billion won has been reflected from this quarter. With expanded production capacity, additional commercial orders are expected to increase.
In the field of new drug development, announcements of preclinical and clinical registrations continue. The company presented interim results of its global Phase 2 clinical trial for the AIDS treatment STP-0404 at IDWeek 2025, demonstrating antiviral efficacy equal to or greater than existing treatments based on a new ALLINI mechanism. The company also expects new drug approval for its mitochondrial depletion syndrome treatment within the year.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
