Ildong's market cap fivefold↑ over eight months

Ildong Pharmaceutical's stock price soars 60% in a week…mark cap KRW 523.6B↑

Following the introduction of Pfizer's oral obesity drug, Ildong Pharmaceutical also shows an increasing trend

The obesity drug developed by Ildong's subsidiary confirms effects in Phase 1 clinical trials

Ildong Pharmaceutical's stock price has surged significantly, setting continuous record highs on expectations for its obesity treatment development. The company's market capitalization has increased nearly fivefold over the past eight months. The oral obesity drug being developed by Ildong Pharmaceutical's subsidiary has demonstrated weight-loss effects in its Phase 1 clinical trial.

According to the Korea Exchange on December 13, Ildong Pharmaceutical's stock closed at KRW 44,300 on the 12th, a 9.4% increase from the previous trading day. This continued the sharp rise following a 24.6% surge on the 11th.

Ildong Pharmaceutical's stock price showed an increasing trend over five consecutive trading days since a 0.4% increase on the 8th. The stock jumped by 6.6% on the 9th and by 9.4% on the 10th. Compared with the closing price of KRW 27,750 on the 5th, the stock soared 59.6% over the five trading days.

Based on the closing price on the 12th, Ildong Pharmaceutical's market capitalization reached KRW 1.4016 trillion, an increase of KRW 523.6 billion from KRW 878.0 billion just a week prior. Ildong Pharmaceutical surpassed the KRW 1 trillion mark again on the 10th, about two months after recording KRW 1.0725 trillion on September 29. The company's market capitalization increased from KRW 1 trillion on December 12 to KRW 1 trillion on December 27, 2022. The largest ever was KRW 1.5412 trillion recorded on July 18, 2022, when the stock surged on expectations for a COVID-19 treatment.

The trend of Ildong Pharmaceutical's market capitalization (unit: KRW 100 million, source: Financial Supervisory Service)

Ildong Pharmaceutical's stock price continued to soar with the attention to its new oral obesity drug candidate. The value of orally administered obesity treatments has increased significantly overseas.

Pfizer recently acquired the rights to the small-molecule GLP-1 class obesity treatment 'YP05002' from China's Fosun Pharma subsidiary, Yao Pharma, for up to $1.93 billion (approximately KRW 3 trillion), including an upfront payment of $150 million (approximately KRW 220 billion).

YP05002 is a new drug candidate currently undergoing Phase 1 clinical trials in Australia and is being developed as an oral obesity treatment. Pfizer will conduct the Phase 2 clinical trial after Yao Pharma completes the ongoing Phase 1 trial.

This global trend is the background for the high interest in 'ID110521156', the oral obesity drug being developed by Ildong Pharmaceutical's new drug development subsidiary, Yunovia.

ID110521156 is a GLP-1 receptor agonist that acts as an analogue of the GLP-1 hormone, which induces insulin secretion to regulate blood sugar levels in the body. The GLP-1 hormone is produced by the beta cells of the pancreas. It plays a role similar to that of GLP-1, which is involved in insulin synthesis and secretion, blood glucose reduction, regulation of gastrointestinal motility, and appetite suppression.

While existing GLP-1 receptor agonists are primarily injectable formulations of biological agents such as peptides, ID110521156 is a small-molecule synthetic compound candidate. Ildong Pharmaceutical's strategy is to position the drug as a convenient oral treatment for patients, capitalizing on its structurally stable properties compared to peptide formulations, offering superior manufacturing efficiency and productivity.

The weight loss effect of ID110521156 was confirmed in the Phase 1 topline data released in September. The study was conducted on 36 healthy adults admitted to a clinical facility. Participants were divided into three dosage groups ▲50mg ▲100mg ▲200mg, with 12 subjects assigned to each group. ID110521156 was administered once daily for 4 weeks (28 days).

Results showed that the 50mg and 100mg groups achieved average weight-loss efficacy of 5.5% and 6.9%, respectively, over 4 weeks. The 200mg group showed excellent weight loss, with an average of 9.9% and a maximum of 13.8%. The company explained that it secured clinically significant data, as the percentage of subjects who achieved 5% or more weight loss after the four-week treatment was 0% in the placebo group, but 55.6% in the 50mg group, 66.7% in the 100mg group, and 87.5% in the 200mg group.

Ildong Pharmaceutical's market capitalization was only KRW 294.7 billion on April 9 and remained in the KRW 300 billion range until July 4. The stock surged after hitting the upper limit on July 7 and continued its upward trend, leading to an approximate fivefold increase in market capitalization over eight months.