Hana Financial Investment on the 19th(181,800 0.00%)The company analyzed that it achieved the highest performance in the fourth quarter of last year, but the market forecast (consensus) was below the market estimate due to an increase in labor costs. In the first quarter of this year, sales will decrease compared to the previous quarter, but it is expected that the diagnostic kit division will continue to grow due to the spread of mutant viruses. We maintained our BUY rating and target price of W315,000.
Seegene recorded sales of 1.125 trillion won and operating profit of 6762 billion won based on consolidated financial statements last year. Compared to the previous year, it surged 822.7% and 2915.6%. Net profit increased by 1783.8% to 503.1 billion won. The operating margin reached 60%.
In the fourth quarter, it recorded the highest quarterly results with sales of 4417 billion won and operating profit of 257.5 billion won. This is an increase of 1207.9% and 4921.9%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. In the third quarter, sales of 3269 billion won and operating profit of 209.4 billion won increased 35.1% and 22.7% respectively.
Researcher Seon Min-jung analyzed, “It was the highest performance in the fourth quarter, but it showed an earnings shock that was 18.5% below the consensus. It is explained that the current R&D expenditure was 10.5 billion won, which is nearly twice as high as the previous quarterly average. In addition, as bonuses increased due to the surge in operating profit last year, labor costs also increased by 370% compared to the previous year.
Seegene’s sales in the first quarter of this year are expected to decrease compared to the fourth quarter of last year. This is because the third pandemic of Corona 19 is ending based on the United States. Researcher Sun said, “The declining trend of corona19 confirmed cases is also occurring in Seegene’s major export regions, such as Europe and South America.” As a result, the export amount of diagnostic kits in Songpa-gu, Seoul last month was $76.89 million (about KRW 85.1 billion), about 28 from the previous month. % Decreased.”
“This decline is expected to continue in February.”
However, growth was expected to continue due to the spread of the mutant virus. Researcher Sun said, “Because treatments and vaccines may vary depending on the mutant virus, it is necessary to determine the type of mutant. It is also necessary to diagnose this in order to measure the spread of the mutant virus.”
Seegene developed a diagnostic kit that can check the infection of four mutant viruses, including the existing Corona 19 virus and the UK, South Africa, Japan, and Brazil, earlier this month.
Reporter Kim Ye-na [email protected]
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