SEOUL—Samsung Biologics Co., the biotech arm of South Korea's Samsung Group, reported a 26.5 percent increase in net profit for the first quarter, driven by robust sales. The company's net income for the quarter ending in March was 179.4 billion won (US$131 million), up from 141.8 billion won the previous year.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Sales rose 31.3 percent to a record 946.9 billion won for the January-March period, while operating profit increased by 15 percent to 221.3 billion won, marking the highest figures for the period. According to Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency, these earnings surpassed market expectations with analysts predicting a net profit of 177.4 billion won. The significant growth in sales was attributed to the full operation of the company's fourth plant and strong performance of its biosimilar products in the U.S. and Europe. Additionally, Samsung Biologics secured new contract manufacturing organization deals with global biopharmaceutical firms, including UCB and MSD. Despite the positive earnings report, shares in Samsung Biologics fell slightly by 0.13 percent to 790,000 won, underperforming against the Korea Composite Stock Price Index, which rose 2.01 percent. The earnings were announced after market close.