Shares of SK Holdings Co. rallied on Monday on growing expectation that the initial public offering (IPO) of its subsidiary SK Biopharmaceuticals Co., which is considered one of the biggest biotech IPOs this year, is nearing.

Shares of SK Holdings ended 10.99 percent higher at 202,000 won ($163.8) on Monday from previous closing. Stocks even shot up 11.81 percent to an intraday high of 203,500 won. Shares of affiliated SK Bioland Co. also soared the daily ceiling of 29.9 percent to finish at 38,450 won.

SK holdings was trading 4.46 percent, or 9,500 won, higher at 211,550 won in the morning session on Wednesday.

Jeong Dae-ro, a researcher at Mirae Asset Daewoo Co., said in a report that SK Holdings stock has gained momentum as the IPO of its subsidiary SK Biopharmaceuticals looks “imminent.”

He added that SK Biopharmaceuticals is confirmed to have been readying to submit a registration statement this month, and the company’s enterprise value is estimated to reach 4 to 5 trillion won, which is about 30 to 40 percent of SK Holdings’ market value of 12.8 trillion won based on Friday’s closing.

SK Holdings, SK Group’s holding entity, owns a full stake in SK Biopharmaceuticals that is a developer of new drugs related to central nerves. It was established on April 1, 2011.

The bio unit of SK Group gained approval from Korea Exchange for its preliminary IPO review in December. It initially planned to join the country’s main Kospi bourse by June this year but later decided to push back the offering to the third quarter due to the COVID-19 outbreaks that had quickly dampened investor enthusiasm for IPO early this year.

The latest development has ensured investors that one of potentially the biggest biotech IPOs for this year is back on the track without further delay.

SK Biopharmaceuticals in November received marketing approval for its epilepsy treatment Xcopri (cenobamate) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, becoming the first Korean drug company to get the nod from the FDA for marketing an independently developed new drug without a licensing-out deal.

By Pulse

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