Celltrion made 510 billion won in operating profit in the third quarter, the first time the South Korean biopharmaceutical company has passed 500 billion won in a single quarter. The preliminary consolidated figures, released on Monday 12 October, also mark its third consecutive quarter of record earnings. The company, based in Songdo, Incheon, has now raised its quarterly profit record in every quarter of 2026 so far.
Revenue for July to September came to 1.5 trillion won, up 45.8 per cent from a year earlier, while operating profit rose 69.2 per cent. The operating margin widened by 4.7 percentage points to 34 per cent. Earlier in the year Celltrion had set itself quarterly operating profit targets of 300 billion won for the first quarter, 400 billion won for the second and more than 500 billion won for the third. It has now beaten all three. Profit grew considerably faster than sales over the period, which is why the margin moved so sharply.
The company puts the improvement down to its product mix. Next-generation biosimilars, which carry higher margins, are taking a larger share of sales, and Celltrion has been streamlining production and cutting costs at the same time. Sales grew for both established and newer products in its main markets, including Europe and the United States. Celltrion says the direct-sales network it built around its older products is now helping it launch newer biosimilars faster. Better pricing on the newer drugs and lower unit costs together explain why profit outpaced revenue.
A company official singled out passing 500 billion won in quarterly operating profit for the first time as the main result of the quarter, and said that exceeding its profit targets for three quarters running showed Celltrion could carry out its growth strategy. Another official said the business would keep working on the quality of its results. “We will continue to improve our earnings quality,” the official said, pointing to the US launch of Omlyclo and increased supply in Europe as the next sources of growth.
Omlyclo, a biosimilar allergy medication, went on sale in the United States in October as the first biosimilar of its kind, and Celltrion expects it to add to fourth-quarter earnings. The company says the growth seen so far this year should carry into the final three months and is aiming to meet both its fourth-quarter and full-year business targets. With three quarterly goals already met, the final quarter will show whether newer launches such as Omlyclo can keep earnings rising at the same pace.
