SEOUL, February 06 (AJP) - SK Biopharmaceuticals said on Friday that its operating profit more than doubled last year to a record high, driven by strong U.S. sales of its epilepsy drug cenobamate.
The drugmaker reported consolidated operating profit of 203.9 billion won for the year, up about 112 percent from a year earlier. Revenue rose 29.1 percent to 706.7 billion won, while net profit increased 11.6 percent to 253.3 billion won.
Cenobamate, marketed in the United States under the brand name Xcopri, generated U.S. sales of 630.3 billion won for the year, up around 44 percent. The company said the drug was the main driver of the profit surge and also delivered about 27 billion won in annual royalty income.
Monthly prescriptions for cenobamate in the United States reached about 47,000 in December. In the fourth quarter, total prescriptions rose 6.8 percent from the previous quarter and 29.2 percent from a year earlier.
Fourth-quarter revenue increased 19.2 percent year-on-year to 194.4 billion won, while operating profit fell 34 percent to 46.3 billion won. The company attributed the quarterly decline in profit to year-end seasonality and inventory in transit, despite steady prescription growth.
* This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP.
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