FAST NEWS: Genscript’s new cancer drug sales surge in third quarter

The latest: Legend Biotech Corp. (LEGN.US), a cell therapy subsidiary of Genscript Biotech Corp. (1548.HK), announced Tuesday that sales of its Carvykti cancer drug jumped 176% to $152 million in the third quarter from $55 million a year earlier.

Looking up: The drug’s latest revenue figure was also up 30% quarter-on-quarter as sales boom.

Take Note: Legend Biotech is commercializing Carvykti withJanssen Biotech, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US), in an agreement that requires Legend to share 50% of overseas sales of the drug with Janssen.

Digging Deeper: Carvykti is a CAR-T cell therapy that was developed and has been manufactured and commercialized globally by Legend and Janssen since 2017. Legend was previously a drag on Genscript’s performance due to its heavy R&D spending, but is quickly starting to bring returns after Carvykti was approved for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year. In the first half of this year, the drug provided Genscript with approximately $110 million in revenue, accounting for nearly 28% of its total.

Market Reaction: Genscript’s shares fell in early Wednesday trading, and were down 5.7% at HK$19.90 by the midday break. The stock now trades near the lower end of its 52-week range.

Translation by A. Au

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