Taiwan Liposome Co (TLC, 台灣微脂體) rose nearly 76 percent on its trading debut on the GRETAI Securities Market yesterday, after raising NT$729.96 million (US$25.07 million) in its initial public offering (IPO).
After transferring their listing from the emerging board, Taiwan Liposome shares closed at NT$278 per share on its first day of GRETAI trading and at one point rose as high as NT$288, compared to its IPO price of NT$158. The benchmark over-the-counter index ended the day 0.56 percent lower.
On Thursday, the developer of generic drugs used to treat breast and ovarian cancer, as well as peripheral vascular disease, saw its shares end at NT$270.51 on the emerging board. The stock has risen 311.85 percent so far this year, according to the Taiwan Stock Exchange’s data.
Taiwan Liposome, headquartered in Taipei’s Nangang Software Park (南港軟體園區), issued 4.62 million new shares at this IPO. The company said earlier it planned to use the share-sale proceeds to improve its gross margin and strengthen its bottom line.
Taiwan Liposome focuses on the research and development of pharmaceutical products based on its lipid-based drug delivery technologies to cure infected body parts while reducing toxicity from the drugs.
The company’s products can be put into three categories: super generic drugs (including cancer drugs Doxisome and AmBil), new formulation drugs (like ProFlow for vascular disease) and new chemical entity drugs (such as liver cancer drug Lipotecan).
In March, the company signed a collaboration pact with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, agreeing to license the distribution right for Taiwan Liposome’s generic cancer products, including Doxisome, for the US territory to the Israeli company.
Fubon Securities Investment Services Co (富邦投顧) yesterday said the company’s proprietary drug delivery technologies are globally competitive, while its generic drugs Doxisome and AmBil appear very likely to go on the market in near future, which would bring in handsome revenue to the firm.
Taiwan Liposome reported a net income of NT$24.3 million, or earnings per share of NT$0.62, in the third quarter, after posting a net loss of NT$40.69 million, or a net loss per share of NT$1.04 per share, in the first half of the year, company data showed.
Fubon Securities analyst Heather Chang (張雅雯) said the brokerage forecast Taiwan Liposome’s net profit would expand 689 percent to NT$300 million (NT$6.83 per share) next year, from an estimated NT$38 million (NT$0.86 per share) this year, while revenue will rise to NT$648 million from NT$280 millio thanks to the collection of certain milestone payments from Doxisome and royalty payments from AmBil and ProFlow.
“Teva would likely apply for the Food and Drug Administration’s permission to market Doxisome in the US during the first half of next year and brings the drug to the market in 2014,” Chang said in a note. “Once Doxisome enters the market in 2014, the drug’s royalty payments could boost the company’s net profit to NT$680 million (NT$15.46 per share) in 2014 and NT$1.1 billion (NT$25 per share) in 2015.”
Meanwhile, the company has received regulatory approval to sell ProFlow drug in the Taiwanese market and partnered with pharmaceutical firms in Japan and South Korea to sell the drug there next year at the earliest, she said.
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