ASKA pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (E00929) Stock Price

Asuka Pharmaceutical is a pharmaceutical company with drug manufacturing and sales as its core business. The company manufactures and procures pharmaceutical products for human use, primarily supplying them to medical institutions and pharmacies through Takeda Pharmaceutical Industries. In addition to its pharmaceutical business, the company operates a diverse range of businesses including veterinary pharmaceuticals, clinical testing, medical devices, and health foods.

The company's revenue structure is centered on its pharmaceutical business, with Takeda Pharmaceutical Industries as its primary customer. This sales partnership enables the company to secure stable distribution channels and achieve efficient product supply to medical institutions. Through group subsidiaries, the company also provides services to diverse customer segments in its other business areas.

Business segments are divided into the pharmaceutical business and other businesses. In other businesses, subsidiary Asuka Animal Health handles the veterinary pharmaceutical business, while Asuka Pharmaceutical Medical manages clinical testing, medical devices, and health food operations. Group companies work toward efficient business operations through mutual product supply and outsourcing arrangements.

Asuka Pharmaceutical has revised its targets under the medium-term management plan "ASKA PLAN 2020" (through March 2021) in response to changing business conditions, aiming for net sales of 53 billion yen, an operating profit margin of 3.8%, and ROE of 3.6%. Under its vision of becoming a "competitive specialty pharmaceutical company," the company is pursuing a strategy to achieve a leap forward as a specialty pharma business and establish a foundation for sustainable growth.

In priority investment areas, the company is concentrating management resources on obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine (gastroenterology, thyroid, etc.), and urology. In particular, in the obstetrics and gynecology field, the company launched three new products—Relumina tablets (uterine fibroid treatment), Flluwell combination tablets, and Gemina combination tablets—consecutively in the second half of fiscal 2018, differentiating itself through the distinctive feature of oral uterine fibroid treatment for the first time in approximately 20 years. For Rifaximin tablets, a hepatic encephalopathy treatment, the company is working to increase disease awareness with the goal of establishing first-line treatment status.

In new market development, the company is advancing global expansion through a joint venture in India, with the joint venture company "NeoASKA Pharma Private Limited" (with neopharma LLC) proceeding with construction of a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility. Additionally, through a transition to a holding company structure, the company plans to become a "total healthcare company," strengthening business in new areas and enhancing governance frameworks.

In technology innovation efforts, the company relocated its Kawasaki Research Institute to Shonan Health Innovation Park and launched the "Asuka Pharmaceutical Shonan Research Institute" in April 2020. The facility promotes open innovation with industry, government, and academia, and is strengthening collaborative research with external companies such as Lacuoria Drug Discovery and Rena Science. The company is focusing on pipeline advancement in priority areas, including Phase 2 trials of proprietary compound AKP-009 and additional indication trials of TAK-385 for endometriosis.