GC Biopharma said on May 8 that its operating profit on a consolidation basis for the first quarter was 11.7 billion won, up 46.3% from a year earlier on a preliminary basis. Revenue for the same period rose 13.5% to 435.5 billion won.
The key to the improved performance was the immunoglobulin therapy "Aliguolo." First-quarter revenue from Aliguolo was 34.9 billion won, about four times higher than a year earlier. The company said it expects the quarterly growth trend to continue as sales expand in the U.S. market.
Aliguolo is an intravenous (IV) immunoglobulin therapy made by separating and purifying immune proteins from plasma, and is used to treat various immune disorders, including primary immunodeficiency.
The U.S. business environment is also improving. In the U.S. tariff policy announced on Apr., plasma derivatives were included in the duty-free category, easing some uncertainty, according to assessments. Stabilization of operations at ABO Plasma, the U.S. plasma center subsidiary, is also underway. Recently, the plasma center in Laredo, Texas, received authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the company is pushing to open an additional plasma center in Eagle Pass within the year.
On a separate basis, revenue by business institutional sector was tallied at ▲ plasma derivatives 114.9 billion won ▲ vaccines 56.8 billion won ▲ prescription drugs 81.6 billion won ▲ over-the-counter drugs and consumer healthcare 32.4 billion won.
Consolidation subsidiaries also disclosed results. GC Cell and GC MS posted revenue of 37.4 billion won and 23.6 billion won, respectively. GC Wellbeing posted 49.1 billion won in revenue on the distribution effect of Eli Lilly and Company's obesity treatment "Mounjaro." However, GC Biopharma sold its entire equity stake in GC Wellbeing to GC Holdings on Mar. 31, and it will be excluded from the consolidation scope starting in the second quarter.
A GC Biopharma official said, "We will continue the trend of improving performance based on the stable growth of key products."