Seegene Q2 2021 Earnings Show 11 Percent Revenue Growth, YoY

- Revenue of KRW 303.7 billion ($269.1 million) is record for second quarter,up 11 percent year-over-year

- 1H'21 Revenue at KRW 655.5 billion ($580.8 million),58 percent achievement based on total sales in FY2020

- Favorable market conditions expected in second half amid an increasing demand for COVID-19 tests due to the rapid spread of the Delta variant

SEOUL,South Korea,Aug. 18,2021 -- Seegene Inc. (KQ 096530),a leading biotechnology company specializing in molecular diagnostics,today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30,2021.

Seegene reported KRW 303.7 billion ($269.1 million) in total sales,an 11% increase from the same period of the previous year. Operating profit slightly declined year-over-year to KRW 144.2 billion ($127.8 million) as the company has adopted various strategies for its long-term growth—including investments in R&D an recruiting talented personnel who majored in molecular diagnostics. Indeed,Seegene executed KRW 33.2 billion ($29.4 million) in R&D expenses in the 1H'21 alone,exceeding the previous year's total R&D expenses of KRW 26.2 billion ($23.2 million). Also,the number of employees tallied at 1008 as of June 2021,a 42% increase from the end of 2020.

However,the company posted solid revenue growth in the first half of 2021 at KRW 655.5 billion ($580.8 million),representing a whopping 84% growth from first half of 2020 and 58% achievement of the annual revenue of 2020. Although the company's sales in the second quarter rose year-over-year,it showed a 14% decline compared to the previous quarter. Seegene's official explained that the slight decline in revenue is largely due to the company's price policy that has been employed strategically to secure global market share. Also,as European nations have recently ramped up their drives on vaccination,it may have contributed to moderate slide in revenue.

Meanwhile,the company's outlook for the second half of the year looks relatively promising. Demand for COVID-19 test kits is on the rise thanks to the company's pricing policy and due to the emergence of highly transmissible COVID-19 variants such as the Delta variant. Besides,sales of non-COVID diagnostic reagents and other instruments are continuously increasing thereby the company's financial results will likely show a favorable performance in 2H21.

"Although the pandemic is still somewhat unpredictable,it is extremely crucial to conduct surveillance screenings as the virus continues to mutate. Our multiplex reagents are capable of detecting major COVID-19 variants in a single test while they are price competitive as well," said Myungkun Kim,Seegene's Senior Managing Director of IR and PR Department. "Also,as we are expanding our market in unexplored regions such as Asian and Latin American countries,we will be able to generate more valuable results in the global arena",he added.

KRW/USD= 1,128.55 (6/30/21) CER