Hanmi Pharmaceutical announced on the 30th that it recorded sales of KRW 392.9 billion and operating profit of KRW 53.6 billion in the first quarter of this year. Compared with the first quarter of last year, sales increased by 0.5%, but operating profit declined by 9.1%. The company explained that the decrease in operating profit was due to a base effect stemming from one-off costs. Although operating profit fell, the operating margin remained high at 13.6%, maintaining strong profitability. R&D investment amounted to KRW 65.2 billion, accounting for 16.6% of total sales.

A Hanmi Pharmaceutical official stated, “Operating profit was affected by a one-off base effect related to the supply of clinical trial materials to partners, but key products such as Rosuzet maintained solid growth,” adding, “The strong performance of Beijing Hanmi, the local subsidiary in China, and improved profitability at Hanmi Fine Chemical also contributed to the overall results.”

Outpatient prescription sales (based on Ubist data) were tallied at KRW 277.6 billion. Hanmi Pharmaceutical has led the domestic prescription drug market, holding the No. 1 position in domestic outpatient prescription sales for eight consecutive years from 2018 through last year. Among major products, outpatient prescription sales of the dyslipidemia combination therapy new drug “Rosuzet” reached KRW 59.3 billion, up 9.2% from the first quarter of last year. In addition, the hypertension product family “Amosartan Family” contributed KRW 36.4 billion, while the gastroesophageal reflux disease product family “Esomezol Family” generated KRW 14.6 billion.

Hanmi Pharmaceutical said it is maintaining close collaboration with healthcare professionals based on its extensive domestic sales and marketing capabilities and on-the-ground expertise. It also emphasized that it is strengthening its business capabilities and expanding synergies with existing products through partnerships with global pharmaceutical companies such as Boehringer Ingelheim and Ferring Korea.

Growth at affiliates is also noteworthy. Beijing Hanmi Pharmaceutical in China recorded first-quarter sales of KRW 106.4 billion and operating profit of KRW 23.6 billion. While sales increased by 10.3%, operating profit jumped 107.7%, indicating a significant improvement in overall profitability. The company said this was due to a base effect from inventory depletion in China in the first quarter of last year. In terms of products, strong sales continued to be driven mainly by the flagship pediatric probiotic “Mami Ai” and the growth probiotic “Meichang’an.” Hanmi Fine Chemical, an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) specialist, posted first-quarter sales of KRW 21.7 billion. Despite intensifying competition in the cephalosporin (Cepha) antibiotic market, the company successfully returned to the black in operating profit, supported by increased orders for high-margin contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) services.

New drug development is also proceeding smoothly. The company reported that it is steadily pursuing both expansion in scale and enhancement in substance by systematically implementing its new drug development roadmap. In R&D, it is operating a pipeline of more than 30 innovative drug candidates in fields such as obesity, rare metabolic diseases, and oncology, and is strengthening global competitiveness through a differentiated strategy that incorporates new modalities. In particular, Hanmi Pharmaceutical is pushing for the commercialization of the GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1) obesity treatment “Efpeglenatide” within this year. Market observers view the realization of a “Korean Wegovy” as approaching.

Hwang Sang-yeon, CEO of Hanmi Pharmaceutical, said, “We will do our utmost to establish Hanmi’s global standing by accelerating R&D-centered innovation based on our long-standing management philosophy of respect for humanity and value creation,” adding, “This year is expected to be an important year in which we confirm clinical progress across the various new drug development areas that Hanmi has been pursuing.”

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