Lotus Pharmaceuticals Co’s (美時化學製藥) chairman has bought 300,000 shares at an average price of NT$52.1 per share to shore up investors’ confidence amid a stock market rout, the firm said on Thursday.
Robert Wessman purchased the shares through Aztiq Lux SARL, an investment vehicle he leads, Lotus said in a statement.
FALLING PRICES
“The COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a serious blow to the world’s stock markets. In my view, the current Lotus share price does not reflect the company’s long-term prospects and growth potential,” Wessman said.
The generic drug maker’s share price continued to sink after it reported on March 10 an annual decline of 48.62 percent in revenue last month to NT$519 million (US$17.2 million). That was despite the company reporting a record net profit of NT$662 million last year.
Its share price had dropped 52 percent to NT$44.5 on Monday from NT$93 per share on March 10, but recovered 7.68 percent to NT$57.5 in Taipei trading yesterday, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
PREDICTING A REBOUND
The company attributed last month’s weak sales to a slow season and irregular timing of some shipments.
It expects revenue to rebound next quarter aided by the popularity in South Korea of Qsymia, its second-generation anti-obesity drug, and contributions from 50 marketed products in Southeast Asian nations, it told an investors’ conference earlier this month.
NEW DRUGS
This year Lotus would continue concentrating on the development and commercialization of high-quality oncology drugs and complex generic pharmaceuticals for patients worldwide, Wessman said.
“With further investments in our manufacturing facility in Taiwan and a commitment to further diversify and strengthen our product offering, we are well positioned to deliver long-term shareholder value,” he said.
The company expects to gain marketing approval of lenalidomide, the generic equivalent of the oncology drug Revlimid, from the US Food and Drug Administration in July, it said.
Separately, SunMax Biotechnology Co’s (雙美生物科技) board of directors approved a proposal to distribute a cash dividend of NT$1.5 per share, the firm said.
That suggested a payout ratio of 81 percent, based on last year’s earnings of NT$1.84 per share.
The collagen products provider said it has a positive outlook for the first half of this year despite the pandemic, as it has gained more orders and the impact from the outbreak of the virus on its Chinese subsidiary has eased with more clinics reopening, it said.
For the first two months, it reported revenue of NT$111.64 million, an 82 percent increase from a year earlier, corporate data showed.
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