[Click eStock] Hanmi Pharm Target Price Raised from 580,000 to 730,000 Won on "3.2 Trillion Won Technology Transfer"

Kiwoom Securities has raised its target price for Hanmi Pharm from 580,000 won to 730,000 won, following news of a technology transfer for an anti-obesity drug candidate valued at up to 3.2 trillion won, which pushed Hanmi Pharm shares to the daily limit-up.

On August 25, Kiwoom Securities stated in a corporate brief titled "Hanmi is BACK!!" that it is raising the target price by newly reflecting the value of the novel drug candidate HM17321. The new target price of 730,000 won implies over 35% potential upside from the current stock price. The day before, Hanmi Pharm disclosed that it had transferred the technology of its metabolic disease therapeutic candidate 'HM17321' to Genentech, a subsidiary of Roche Group, and as a result, its share price (540,000 won) closed at the upper limit.

Hye-min Heo, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, explained, "Following the technology transfer news, the share price hit the upper limit and market capitalization increased by 1.6 trillion won. This additional technology transfer to Genentech comes only three months after the transfer to Eli Lilly & Co. in June." The total contract size is up to approximately 3.2 trillion won, making it the largest technology transfer contract ever signed between a domestic pharmaceutical company and a global big pharma for a single compound.

In particular, Kiwoom Securities highlighted that this compound is part of Hanmi Pharm's wholly in-house-developed pipeline. Researcher Heo emphasized, "This is Hanmi Pharm's asset, with no profit-sharing with Hanmi Science," and added, "Hanmi Pharm has once again demonstrated its R&D capabilities by securing a large-scale technology transfer deal, even at the early stage of phase 1 trials." She clarified that there are no profit-sharing issues with Hanmi Science regarding this upfront payment. The ongoing phase 1 trial is reportedly expected to be completed by March 2027.

HM17321 is a urocortin 2 (UCN2) analog that works through a mechanism distinct from existing glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) therapies. It has been designed specifically to address the loss of lean body mass, such as muscle, a limitation of traditional anti-obesity drugs. Researcher Heo noted, "HM17321 demonstrated a differentiated effect in preclinical studies by reducing body fat while increasing lean mass and muscle mass," and explained that, "Besides monotherapy, it is also possible to improve body composition and maintain weight loss efficacy through combination therapy with incretin-based drugs."

The same day, Yuanta Securities also raised its target price for Hanmi Pharm from 600,000 won to 700,000 won. Hyunsoo Ha, a researcher at Yuanta Securities, stated, "Considering that HM17321 is still in phase 1 clinical trials with no human data available, it has been valued highly," and added, "In addition to the upfront fee from the technology transfer, separate royalties based on annual net sales after commercialization are also expected." He further commented, "In preclinical studies, HM17321 showed development potential not only for obesity but also in cardiovascular disease models. Additional value assessment will be possible depending on Roche's future development direction."

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