FAST NEWS: Innovent Bio’s loss narrows on strong sales growth

The latest: Biotech company Innovent Biologics Inc. (1801.HK) announced Wednesday its annual net loss last year narrowed 52.8% year-over-year to 1.03 billion yuan ($143 million), while its non-GAAP net narrowed by an even bigger 79.1% to 515 million yuan.

Looking up: The company’s revenue last year jumped by 36.2% to 6.21 billion yuan as it posted strong sales growth for its core product, the Sintilimab injection, and as other products also grew rapidly.

Take Note: While the company’s R&D and administrative expenses declined, its selling and marketing expenses rose by 19.7% to 3.1 billion yuan last year, mainly due to an increase in compensation and benefits for promotional staff, as well as higher spending on promotional activities.

Digging Deeper: Founded in 2011 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2018, Innovent develops and sells innovative drugs to treat tumors and other diseases. It had 10 products on the market at the end of last year. The company is looking to expand overseas, but its application to sell its key Sintilimab injection drug in the U.S. was rejected by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It also suffered a setback with the termination of a licensing agreement with U.S. pharmaceutical company Coherus (CHRS.US).

Market Reaction: Innovent’s shares dipped on Thursday and closed down 1.7% at HK$38.70 by the midday break. The stock now trades in the middle of its 52-week range.

Translation by A. Au

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