The Celltrion Group's strategic merger of Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare has garnered a significant boost following the Korean government's recent prohibition on short selling and the companies' announcement of unprecedented quarterly earnings.

The positive developments have pushed stock prices over the threshold, mitigating the risk of shareholder opposition—a pivotal challenge in the merger's finalization.

Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare shareholders had approved the merger agreement on Oct. 23.

Shareholders opposing the merger can exercise their appraisal right until Nov. 13, with the claim rights price set at 158,130 won ($116.83) for Celltrion and 67,251 won for Celltrion Healthcare.

Notably, the National Pension Service (NPS), which holds a 7.43 percent stake in Celltrion, abstained from the merger vote.

If NPS decides to exercise all their appraisal right, Celltrion will have to pay approximately 1.64 trillion won to NPS.

Celltrion had said they would offer up to 1 trillion won to purchase shares from shareholders that exercise their appraisal rights.

Despite the potential financial impact, Celltrion Group's Chairman Seo Jung-jin confidently assured that the company is prepared to fulfill all buyout requests, even surpassing the 1 trillion won mark.

However, with the current stock values of Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare at 156,800 won and 69,700 won, respectively, it may be more advantageous for dissenting shareholders to refrain from exercising their appraisal rights.

The merger is further supported by both companies' record-high third-quarter performances.

Celltrion said that it posted the highest quarterly sales and operating profit ever at 672.3 billion won and 267.6 billion won, up 25.2 percent and 39.8 percent from the same period last year.  Net profit marked 221.2 billion won in the third quarter, up 32.6 percent from a year earlier. 

Celltrion Healthcare also reported record sales of 647.6 billion won in the third quarter, a 30.45 percent increase from the previous year. Although its operating profit decreased by over 30 percent to 50.5 billion won, the company attributed to the expansion of direct sales regions like the U.S. as the cause.

Additionally, the Celltrion Group completed the acquisition of treasury stocks of Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare worth 529.5 billion won on Tuesday, bringing the total purchase of treasury stocks of the two companies to approximately 952.1 billion won.

Looking forward, the group plans to continue its efforts to enhance shareholder value while closely monitoring market conditions. Celltrion Group expects that the continuous acquisition of Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare shares not only demonstrates its firm resolve toward a successful merger but also substantially aids in maximizing shareholder value.

Despite the companies' smooth business operations, Celltrion Group still perceives the market value of Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare as undervalued due to persistent market instability.

"The aggressive purchase of Celltrion and Celltrion Healthcare shares reflects the group's steadfast determination for a successful merger and future growth," a Celltrion official said. "The acquired shares will be utilized for investments in M&A and other growth engines to bolster our business competitiveness and to persistently enhance the development of a merged Celltrion and shareholder value."