IMP - IR Newsletter Q1. 2022

I. MACRO ENVIRONMENT AND PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY IN Q1/2022

The Vietnam economy in Q1 2022 is gradually recovering after the pandemic is controlled and has positive movements. Total Gross Domestic Products in Q1 grew by 5.03% year over year. Even though the growth rate in Q1/2022 was relatively higher than the figures of Q1/2021 and Q1/2020, such ratio was lower than the ones prior to the outbreak of the pandemic. The momentum of the economy is the construction and industry sector, which accounted for 37.97% GDP and increased 6.38%. Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery rose by 2.45% and made up 10.94% of GDP. One of the striking feature is that the service sector has caught up motivation to develop. In Q1/2021, service sector went up by 4.58% and contributed 41.7% of total GDP. Product taxes fewer subsidies on production constituted 9.37% of GDP.

Import and export activities have strongly bounced back in Q1/2022. As of end of Mar 2022, total import-export turnover was estimated at USD 176.35 billion, growing by 14.4% year over year. Vietnam witnessed export surplus in Q1/2022 where export turnover achieved USD 88.58 billion, increasing 12.9% and import turnover was USD 87.77 billion and rose by 15.9% compared to the earlier year.

Although USD has a trend of appreciation and mobilization interest rates have increased in Mar 2022, in general exchange rate and interest rates in Q1/2021 were kept stable to create favorable conditions for business and production recovery after the stagnant time induced by the pandemic.

However, the Vietnam economy still encounters many challenges on the way to go back to normal whilst the pandemic is moving complicatedly in Vietnam and places around the world. In addition, inflation has been rising due to the fact that there are increase in demand after the pandemic, input materials’ prices because of goods and services have surged. Especially, the jump of energy prices could lead to higher inflation rates in the next quarters of 2022.

In 2021, the pharmaceutical industry has been adversely impacted by the 4th outbreak of the pandemic in Vietnam. According the figures from Ministry of Health, Vietnam recorded over 1.7 million infectious cases from April 27 2021 to December 31 2021. The demand for Covid treatment supporting drugs increased rapidly, which could open new growing prospect for the pharmaceutical industry in 2022. Moreover, beside Covid-19, other diseases and aging population might be motivations to boost developments of the pharmaceutical industry.

A report from FPTS indicated that the Vietnam pharmaceutical industry in 2022 would grow approximately 9.2% and estimated to achieve: VND 141.4 thousand billion. In which, retail channel could rise from 5 to 8% and accomplished VND 80 thousand billion whereas the hospital channel was forecasted to go up from 8 to 10.5% and to attain VND 60 thousand billion. The hospital channel was predicted to experience high growth rate in 2022 when Vietnam has adapted to stay vigilantly with Covid-19 and the post Covid-19 sequelea could result in high demand for prescription drugs.

In Q1/2022, pharmaceutical enterprises were catching up growing momentum in hospital channel once restrictions had been eased. Simultaneously, production actions could fully recover as the time prior the 4th outbreak of the pandemic. However, the surge in prices together with lockdown orders in China might make the global supply chain continue to be disrupted, increase in input materials’ prices; which would affect business, productions and gross margin of firms.

II. IMP STOCK IN QUARTER I 2022

In Q1/2022, there were 11,621,547 shares being traded, which mostly were put through transactions of the major shareholder KWE Beteiligungen AG (KWE) and other shareholders. After selling out 10,112,023 shares in Feb 2022, KWE was no longer major shareholder of Imexpharm. In addition, in quarter 1 2022, the major shareholder – SK Investment Vina III has raised the ownership to 46.47%. As of Mar 31 2022, Imexpharm has 4 major shareholders with ownership rate being over 5% of outstanding shares including: SK Investment Vina III (46,47%), Vietnam Pharmaceutical Corporation – Vinapharm- Joint Stock Company (22.03%), Sunrise Kim Investment JSC (9.69%), KBA Investment JSC (7.37%).
Order matching transactions in Q1/2022 were 543,800 shares, which was only equal to 14% of the amount in Q1/2021. The highest closing price in Q1/2022 of IMP was VND 86,400/share and the lowest one was VND 74,300/share. The change in shareholder structure and soar in stock price might lead to fewer order matching transactions of IMP.

III. BUSINESSES OF IMEXPHARM IN Q1 2022

Imexpharm businesses were being recovered after the long time being adversely impacted by the pandemic. Total net revenue and other income of the Company in Q1/2022 attained VND 317.3 billion, grew by 5.4% year over year. If compared with the draft resolution relating to the proposed annual revenue target of VND 1,450 billion summited to the General Meeting of Shareholders, the net revenue and income in Q1/2022 made up 21.9% of the plan.
In Q1/2022, most revenues of Imexpharm were generated by distributing finished goods manufactured by the Company. There was no export and franchise products. The ratio of other purchases was very low in revenue structure. Although total revenue of Imexpharm grew in Q1/2022, ETC has not recovered yet and decreased sharply by 43.8%. On the other hand, OTC surged by 33.8%. The proportion of OTC/ETC at the end of Mar 2021 was 83.2% and 16.8% respectively.
Profit of Imexpharm in Q1/2021 rose dramatically. Operating profit soared by 25% compared to the same period’s figure of last year while profit before tax achieved VND 66 billion and raised by 19.6% year over year. In case to compare with the proposed annual plan of profit before tax being VND 275 billion, profit of the quarter 1 accomplished 24% of the target. Gross profit margin of Imexpharm in quarter 1/2022 also grew by 3.6 percentage point compared to Q1/2021.
Selling and administrative expenses in Q1/2022 increased 7.8% and 10.6% respectively in comparison with the correspondent period’s numbers of the previous year. Sales activities are gradually recovered, so selling and administrative expenses will go up. But such increase is under controlled and congruent with the strategies of Imexpharm.
Total asset of Imexpharm dropped slightly approximately 1% as the Company has reduced debts compared to the balance at the beginning of 2021. However, owner’s equity of Imexpharm witnessed modest growth of 4.2%.
Current ratio and quick ratio as of Mar 31 2022 were 3.3 and 1.8 respectively, which decreased year over year. The fact that current ratio in 2021 suddenly surged is due to the long term loan from ADB disbursed in Q1. Although current ratio and quick ratio decreased but they are kept at very safe level and suitable for conservative working capital policy of the Company.
Because of a jump in net income of Q1/2021, the profitability ratios: profit before tax/net revenue, ROS rose year over year. However, since profit dropped in 2021; ROA, ROE, EPS in the last 4 quarters still declined compared to the figures of Q1/2021.
Basic EPS in the last 4 quarters decreased and closing price raised, which made P/E go up by 1.4-time year over year. In addition, P/B fell inconsiderably by 0.1 time. Closing price at Mar 21 2022 was VND 75,000, experiencing a small rise of 2% compared to the one of the last round in Q1/2021.

IV. PLANS IN Q2/2022

The pandemic is still complicated; therefore, Imexpharm continues to conduct manufacturing and businesses safely in the context that the Covid-19 is existing.
Inflation has a trend to increase rapidly after the pandemic and the surge in energy prices, which could cause input material prices rise and affect the Company’s profit. Hence, Imexpharm has been pursuing the stockpile strategy to ensure business and production continuity and smooth to maintain gross profit margin.
On April 25 2022, the Annual General Meeting of Shareholder 2022 will be convened at Imexpharm’s headquarter, the BOD will monitor such organization to make sure that the Meeting would be held successfully.