Hugel said Tuesday that it recorded 45.8 billion won ($42.3 million) in the first quarter of this year, an 8.6 percent decrease from the previous quarter.
The botulinum toxin (BTX) manufacturer also registered 22.3 billion won in operating profit in the same period, losing more than 10.7 percent from the previous quarter. However, the company managed to increase its net profit to 21.2 billion won, a 2.6 percent increase from the fourth quarter of last year.
“Hugel’s operating profit margin fell, due to non-recurring expenses, including post-merger integration with Hugel Pharma and Hugel Meditec, and TV advertising and promotion for Wellage,” the company said in a statement. “However, as overseas exports accounted for 56.8 percent of total sales we have successfully strengthened our export-oriented business structure.”
The company expects to see further growth in export, as export sales to Russia began in the last quarter of 2017, and Brazil in early 2018, the statement added.
Regarding exported products, Botulax, Hugel’s primary product, has indications for blepharospasm, glabellar lines, post-stroke upper-limb spasticity, and foot deformity in pediatric cerebral palsy. Also, the company is undergoing clinical trials for crow’s feet and overactive bladder, to expand its aesthetics and therapeutic indications further.
Hugel currently markets its BTX in 26 countries and is also undergoing regulatory review for export in more than 30 countries. The global-scale phase 3 clinical trials for Botulax in the U.S., EU, and China are also underway.
The company has also launched Chaeum SHAPE 10, Hugel’s first body filler for penile enhancement, at the end of 2017 and is actively targeting domestic urology market. Hugel also exports the treatment to 14 countries, adding the Philippines, Iran, and Malaysia to its shipment destination list last year. This year, the company is expecting approvals in six additional countries, including China, Brazil and Chile.
Hugel plans to put in efforts to develop and commercialize innovative products, including painless, liquid formulation and patch-type of botulinum toxin, and BMT101, an RNAi technology-based anti-scarring therapeutics, which is currently undergoing phase 1 clinical trials in Korea.
“Hugel will continue to grow as a global biopharmaceutical company by expanding our global footprint, strengthening marketing capability, and focusing on R&D for new drugs,” Hugel CEO Sohn Ji-hoon said.