[Edaily Reporter YU JIN-HEE ] On the 12th, as the domestic securities market continued to show mixed trends and the biotech sector also failed to establish a clear direction, traditional pharmaceutical and biotech companies with solid profitability remained the market’s mainstay.

Amid a market characterized by extreme volatility, stocks backed by strong fundamentals maintained a steady upward trend, while those exposed to supply-demand imbalances and financial risks faced the harsh reality of the market, experiencing extreme fluctuations.

“GC Genome Corporation”: Early Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis U.S. Expansion Takes Shape, Solid Earnings

According to KG Zeroin MP Doctor (MP DOCTOR), the leading biotech companies that recorded double-digit fluctuations—ranking among the top gainers and losers on the domestic stock market that day—included MOA Life Plus(142760), #GC Genome Corporation, and #Baropharm.

The stock prices of these companies posted sharply divergent results compared to the previous day, rising 30.00% (regular session closing price: 117 won), 13.20% (8,400 won), and falling 18.42% (9,610 won), respectively.

Market experts analyze that while BaroPharm—a newly listed stock facing an overhang (potential selling pressure) issue immediately after its IPO—and MOA Life Plus, which was pushed to the brink by the emergence of its parent company’s EOD (expiration of debt) risk, experienced a paradoxical “surge” due to supply-demand distortions, GC Genome Corporation—which is making its entry into the global market a reality based on stable core business profits—served as a pillar of support for biotech investment sentiment.

Amid a general wait-and-see attitude in the stock market, buying interest in GC Genome Corporation stems from its stable profit trend in domestic operations and expectations for the commercialization of its early pancreatic cancer screening test in the U.S. market. The securities industry is paying close attention to GC Genome Corporation’s steep earnings growth. In a recent report, Korea Investment & Securities projected that GC Genome Corporation’s consolidated revenue for the third quarter of this year would reach 10.4 billion won, a 17.8% increase year-over-year, while operating profit would surge 31.3% to 1 billion won.

The operating profit margin is estimated at 9.7%, and analysts predict the company will comfortably continue its streak of consecutive operating profits, which has been ongoing since the second quarter of last year. Previously, SamsungSecurities also gave a positive assessment of GC Genome Corporation’s performance, noting that the company recorded revenue of 15.7 billion won (an 8% year-over-year increase) and operating profit of 600 million won (a 119% increase) in the first half of this year, marking five consecutive quarters of profitability.

The company’s domestic flagship testing services serve as a solid pillar of its performance. “G-NIPT,” a non-invasive prenatal test that analyzes fetal DNA in a pregnant woman’s blood to detect chromosomal abnormalities, has seen a steady increase in test volume—from 14,000 in 2023 to 18,000 in 2024 and 25,200 last year—and is on the verge of reaching 30,000 tests annually this year.

In addition, “iCanSearch,” a non-insured test that detects multi-cancer markers using cell-free DNA in the blood, has also become firmly established across all tertiary general hospitals in Korea and in approximately 40% of general hospitals, driving the company’s overall growth. The number of “iCancerSearch” tests surged from 900 in 2024 to 5,100 last year, and has already surpassed 4,100 in the first half of this year alone; the company plans to expand its corporate client base to approximately 160 by the end of the year.

Exports to Japan, which began in the first quarter, and local certification in Japan expected in the first quarter of next year are also cited as additional growth drivers. The key to a medium- to long-term revaluation of the company’s enterprise value lies in “Pancsight,” an early-stage pancreatic cancer screening test targeting the U.S. market. GC Genome Corporation, which holds a 24.1% stake in GC Labtech—an affiliate—achieved encouraging results in a U.S. clinical study involving a total of 2,800 specimens, with a sensitivity of 93.7% and a specificity of 95.4%. In particular, it demonstrated competitiveness with a sensitivity of 87.5% for early-stage pancreatic cancer (Stages 1 and 2), which is critical for determining treatment prognosis.

Based on these clinical data, GC Genome Corporation has established a roadmap to submit a pre-review request to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this month, apply for Breakthrough Device Designation (BDD) by the first quarter of next year, and proceed with the approval process within this year, with the goal of obtaining final approval and commencing commercialization the following year. Distribution in the U.S. will be handled by Guardant Health, a global liquid biopsy specialist that has established a local sales network through its colorectal cancer liquid biopsy product, “Guardant Shield.”

A securities industry official stated, “GC Genome Corporation is entering the high-value-added overseas diagnostics market based on a solid hospital network affiliated with a traditional pharmaceutical company and stable cash generation capabilities,” adding “If the company successfully establishes key distribution partnerships in the U.S. and continues to accumulate prospective clinical data for insurance coverage, its goal of commercializing the test as a Laboratory-Developed Test (LDT) and securing insurance code listing in the U.S. by 2028 is entirely achievable,” the source added.

‘Baropharm’ Plummets Following Post-Listing Sell-Off by Venture Capital Firms

While GC Genome Corporation sailed smoothly on the strength of its core business competitiveness, Baropharm—a pharmacy integration platform company that made an ambitious debut on the KOSDAQ market—struggled as it faced the “harsh reality” of massive profit-taking sell-offs in the early days of its listing. Following a plunge of over 28% on the 11th, its first trading day, the stock continued its steep decline for two consecutive days, falling well below the initial public offering (IPO) price range (16,400–20,200 won).

The immediate trigger for BaroPharm’s sharp stock price decline was the exit selling by venture capital (VC) firms, which were its initial financial investors (FIs). The Korea Exchange designated BaroPharm as a “stock with the highest trading volume from a single account” on the 12th, after 433,836 shares—equivalent to 3.63% of BaroPharm’s listed shares—were net sold from a specific account on the first day of listing.

Under the exchange’s system, venture funds without legal entity status are classified as “individual” accounts; however, market observers have identified the seller as the “KB Global Platform Fund.” This means that the entire tradable portion (433,836 shares) of the fund’s total holding of 867,673 shares—which had been subject to a lock-up period—was dumped onto the market on the day of the listing.

Although negative supply-and-demand factors are weighing on the stock price, the prevailing view is that Baropharm’s business fundamentals remain solid. Founded in 2019 by CEO Kim Seul-gi, a former pharmacist, Baropharm is South Korea’s largest integrated pharmacy ordering platform, with 24,787 member pharmacies—representing over 90% of the country’s total.

Leveraging overwhelming traffic—with a cumulative Total Gross Merchandise Value (TGMV) reaching 7.2 trillion won—the company successfully turned its performance around by expanding its direct-purchase distribution (BMS) and private label (PB) businesses. In the third quarter of this year, consolidated revenue reached 49.6 billion won, a 77.9% increase year-over-year, and the company returned to profitability with an operating profit of 2.3 billion won.

Following first-half revenue of 69 billion won and operating profit of 2.2 billion won, the company is continuing its steep revenue growth in the second half as well. The company’s strategy is to use the proceeds from this initial public offering (IPO) as seed capital to accelerate the development of a healthcare artificial intelligence transformation (AX) ecosystem. It plans to officially launch “Baroi,” an Agent AI exclusively for pharmacists trained on 7 trillion won worth of actual transaction order data, along with a pharmaceutical supply and demand forecasting and automated ordering engine early next year, and expand its reach with “BaromD,” a platform for physicians, and a solution linking telemedicine prescriptions (BPCS).

The company also plans to invest 14 billion won in expanding the production facilities of its subsidiary, CHD Pharmaceutical, to increase the proportion of in-house production and lower the cost ratio to below 50 percent. This will transform its current profit structure—which relies heavily on direct purchasing and distribution with high cost ratios—into a high-margin model.

However, resolving the overhang risk is seen as a prerequisite for a short-term recovery in the stock price. This is because approximately 780,000 shares—the remaining tradable shares held by major shareholders with stakes of 1% or more, such as COMPANY K PARTNERS LIMITED New Deal Fund (213,776 shares) and KB Digital Platform Fund (257,834 shares)—are currently on the market, making it impossible to rule out the possibility of additional selling pressure.

A financial investment industry official stated, “Although BaroPharm possesses a dominant position in the pharmacy market and the solid foundation of having turned a profit, it is undergoing an excessive correction due to supply-demand imbalances in the early stages of its listing,” adding, “A true revaluation of the company’s value will only occur once the exercise of the three-month put option granted to general subscribers is resolved and the process of absorbing the existing VC shares is completed.”

The Paradox of ‘MOA Life Plus’ Surge Amid Parent Company’s EOD Bomb

MOA Life Plus, which recorded the highest gain (hitting the daily price limit) on the domestic stock market that day, is facing its most severe crisis despite its seemingly spectacular stock price surge. Behind the positive news of a biotech licensing deal lie critical negative factors—namely, the parent company Moadata’s severe liquidity crisis and creditors’ enforcement of security interests—leading the market to view this sharp rise with caution as a typical “dead cat bounce” (a temporary rebound following a sharp decline) or speculative volatility resulting from supply-and-demand distortions.

On the 10th, MOA Life Plus’s stock price plummeted following a massive net sell-off of 679,649 shares—equivalent to 3.12% of its total listed shares (21,779,615 shares)—from a single account belonging to a specific other corporation. As a result, the stock was designated as a “cautionary stock” by the exchange on the 11th.

Behind this sell-off lies the successive financial deterioration of its parent company, Moadata. Moadata, an AI-based anomaly detection solutions provider, recorded an operating loss of 5.93 billion won last year due to sluggish performance in its core business. It followed this with a 3.7 billion won deficit in the first half of this year, dealing a severe blow to its cash generation capacity.

The crisis spiraled out of control as the company’s “mezzanine rollover”—involving convertible bonds (CBs) and bonds with warrants (BWs) issued to secure liquidity—reached its limit. In August, Moadata received a notice of loss of the benefit of the term (EOD) from Sangsangin Co., Ltd. due to delinquency on a 4.84 billion won loan, and its debt-to-equity ratio soared to 570% as of the end of the first half, partly due to the recognition of valuation losses on derivatives.

In particular, after Moadata provided 6.1 million shares of its subsidiary MOA Life Plus as collateral for the loan, MOA Life Plus’s holdings of the parent company’s BW and common stock were also frozen as collateral by the creditor, putting the entire group’s corporate governance and liquidity at risk of collapse.

In fact, the creditor, Sangsangin Co., Ltd., announced on the 4th that it had acquired the right to dispose of approximately 1.73 million shares of Moadata stock and mezzanine securities as collateral due to the loss of the benefit of the term on the loan. On the 11th, as trading in Moadata resumed, a massive volume of short-selling orders flooded the market, causing the stock to hit the daily price limit down. MOA Life Plus, a subsidiary, also suffered the humiliation of plummeting to penny stock status (in the 100-won range) as it was exposed to the spillover of risks from its parent company and pressure from creditors to liquidate collateral.

Nevertheless, the intrinsic value of MOA Life Plus’s new drug pipeline remains a key factor attracting market interest. The muscle-wasting treatment candidates “EL-22” (formerly BLS-M22) and “EL-32” (formerly BLS-M32), for which the company licensed the technology to the U.S. biotech firm NorthStrive Biosciences, are garnering attention as alternatives to prevent muscle loss—a side effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) class obesity treatments.

NorthStrive, the company’s partner, began a bioequivalence study comparing locally produced U.S. materials with existing materials last August and is preparing to submit an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for a Phase 2 clinical trial. In September, it further expanded its indications by filing a patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for the prevention of muscle loss caused by microgravity during long-duration spaceflight. MOA Life Plus is set to receive a milestone payment of $3 million (approximately 4 billion won) upon the initiation of the U.S. Phase 2 clinical trial.

Industry experts advise that MOA Life Plus’s technological potential and corporate governance risks should be viewed as entirely separate issues.

A biotech industry official stated, “While it is positive that MOA Life Plus’s obesity and space-related muscle loss pipelines are progressing smoothly through global partners, the current sharp fluctuations in the stock price are an abnormal phenomenon resulting from a clash between short-covering and bargain-hunting, rather than reflecting the value of the new drug,” and “Investors must remain particularly vigilant regarding extreme stock price volatility until Moadata’s delays in reselling its own bonds and the creditor group’s issues with collateral disposal are fully resolved,” the official emphasized.