Samsung Biologics' net rises 63.3% in 2021

Samsung Biologics' third plant in Songdo, Incheon. [SAMSUNG BIOLOGICS]

Samsung Biologics’ 2021 net profit rose 63.3 percent to 393.6 billion won ($329.3 million), but fell short of a market consensus.

The consensus was 440 billion won, as compiled by market tracker FnGuide.

The contract manufacturing organization (CMO) reported 1.57 trillion won in revenue in 2021, up 34.6 percent on year, barely exceeding a consensus of 1.56 trillion won. Its 2021 operating profit surged 84 percent to 537.3 billion, but also fell short of market expectations of 543.4 billion won.

Its net profit for the fourth quarter declined 17.6 percent to 79.3 billion won.

“The increase in the number of orders and the high operation rate of our third plant in Incheon were the largest contributors,” Samsung Biologics said in a statement. “Compared to 2017, when we went into the black for the first time, the operating profit rose more than eight-fold. Yearly revenue jumped more than three times during the same period.”

Established in 2011, Samsung Biologics has signed a total of 61 CMO deals and 82 contract and development organization (CDO) deals, worth about $7.1 billion as of the end of last September. The company has many global big pharmaceutical customers, including AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline and Eli Lilly.

Samsung is building its fourth factory in Songdo, Incheon, which will have an annual capacity of 256,000 liters (67,628 gallons), the highest capacity for a single bio production plant in the world, according to the company.

It is planning to start partial operation of that plant in October. It has signed three deals with big pharmaceutical companies for five drugs to be made in the plant, and is in talks with 20 additional companies about 30 products.

Samsung also bought a site for a fifth factory, which it hopes to break ground on in the first half. It is in the process of buying 100,000 pyeong (3.56 million square feet) of land in Songdo for additional facilities, with the aim of closing a deal in the second quarter. The site will be able to accommodate four new plants.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]