Dong-A ST
South Korean maker of prescription drugs, biosimilars, and Growtropin growth hormone.
On the record
Checkpoint: Q2/Q3 2026 operating margin report, tests whether Q1's profit rebound holds
The call
Revenue keeps growing but margins stay thin, leaving Dong-A ST a smaller player fighting Samsung Bioepis and Celltrion on their own turf.
Dong-A ST makes and sells pharmaceutical drugs in South Korea and globally, with recent approval to sell a key biosimilar drug (IMULDOSA) in the US, Canada, and Europe. The company faces a tough squeeze: bigger rivals like Samsung Bioepis and Celltrion dominate the biosimilar market and have forced prices down, which is squeezing Dong-A's profits (down 16 percent this year, with a loss in the final quarter). The company will likely survive because it has a profitable parent company backing it and a popular growth hormone drug (Growtropin) that makes steady money, but the real question is whether its profits will stabilize over the next few quarters or continue to weaken, which would determine if this is just a temporary dip or a lasting problem.
Why
01
AI pressure: None apparent. AI drug discovery tools could speed rivals' pipelines, but nothing shows Dong-A ST losing ground to an AI product today. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: Samsung Bioepis and Celltrion in biosimilars. Both rivals post over ₩1T operating profit while Dong-A ST's biosimilar arm runs on much thinner margins and smaller scale. Could a giant copy it? Probably.
03
What protects it. FDA, EMA, and Health Canada approvals for IMULDOSA plus a diversified domestic drug lineup (Growtropin, Jaquvo, Motilitone) keep cash flowing even as biosimilar margins thin.
What would change this call
Dong-A ST's operating margin stays below 5% through Q2 and Q3 2026 earnings reports. Would show biosimilar pricing pressure and rival scale are permanently compressing profitability, not a one-off dip.
Published US biosimilar market-share data shows IMULDOSA losing ground to Samsung Bioepis or Amgen Stelara biosimilars. Would confirm Dong-A ST's biosimilar franchise is being outcompeted by larger rivals internationally.
Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare announces new reference-price cuts affecting Dong-A ST's ETC drug lineup. Would show the domestic pricing regime continuing to erode margins on its core prescription business.
Published US biosimilar market-share data shows IMULDOSA losing ground to Samsung Bioepis or Amgen Stelara biosimilars. Would confirm Dong-A ST's biosimilar franchise is being outcompeted by larger rivals internationally.
Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare announces new reference-price cuts affecting Dong-A ST's ETC drug lineup. Would show the domestic pricing regime continuing to erode margins on its core prescription business.
Key numbers
- FY2025 revenue ₩745.1B, up 16.3% YoY
- FY2025 operating profit ₩27.2B, down 16.1% YoY
- Q1 2026 operating profit ₩10.77B, up 53.7% YoY
Named risks
- Permanent 9.63% domestic price cut on 122 drugs finalized by Supreme Court, no path to reversal.
- Q4 2025 operating loss and full-year operating profit decline of 16.1% signal margin compression.
- Subscale position in biosimilars against Samsung Bioepis and Celltrion, which each post 30-75x Dong-A ST's operating profit.
- IMULDOSA is fifth entrant among Stelara biosimilars, facing established competitors like Amgen and Samsung Bioepis.
- Discrepancies between consolidated and standalone revenue reporting create uncertainty in tracking true performance.
Rivals, as read in July 2026
| Rival | Direction | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Samsung Bioepis | losing to | 2.07 trillion KRW operating profit in 2025 vs Dong-A ST's 27.2 billion KRW, reported Feb 6, 2026 |
| Celltrion | losing to | Surpassed 1 trillion KRW operating profit for first time in 2025, dwarfing Dong-A ST's scale |
| Amgen (Wezlana) | contesting | IMULDOSA is 5th Stelara biosimilar to market behind Amgen's Wezlana, per drugs.com history, n.d. |
| Hanmi Pharmaceutical | losing to | Hanmi posted 257.8 billion KRW operating profit in 2025 vs Dong-A ST's 27.2 billion KRW |
| SK Biopharmaceuticals | losing to | SK Biopharm 2025 operating profit of 203.9 billion KRW, nearly 8x Dong-A ST's total |
Questions people ask
- Is Dong-A ST profitable in 2026?
- Yes but thinly. Dong-A ST posted FY2025 operating profit of 27.2 billion KRW, down 16.1% YoY, with a Q4 2025 operating loss. Q1 2026 rebounded with operating profit of 10.77 billion KRW, up 53.7% YoY on a standalone basis, as of April 27, 2026.
- What is Dong-A ST's biggest competitor in biosimilars?
- Samsung Bioepis and Celltrion dominate Korean biosimilars, dwarfing Dong-A ST. Samsung Biologics/Bioepis posted 2025 operating profit of 2.07 trillion KRW and Celltrion topped 1 trillion KRW for the first time, both reported February 6, 2026, versus Dong-A ST's 27.2 billion KRW.
- Could AI replace Dong-A ST's drug manufacturing?
- No. Dong-A ST relies on FDA, EMA, and Health Canada regulatory approvals plus WHO GMP-certified manufacturing at its Cheonan site, inspected September 2023. These physical, regulatory, and clinical-trial-data assets cannot be replicated by AI, though discovery-stage analytics workflows face generic AI exposure.
- Is Dong-A ST facing legal or pricing risk in Korea?
- Yes. South Korea's Supreme Court finalized a ruling in May 2026 upholding a 9.63% average price cut across 122 Dong-A ST drugs, tied to a 2009-2012 illegal rebate conviction. The price cuts took effect August 2024 and this litigation loss removes any path to reversal.
- Is Dong-A ST a safe company to join in 2026?
- It appears stable but margin-squeezed. Revenue hit a record 745.1 billion KRW in FY2025 (+16.3% YoY), but operating profit fell 16.1% and headcount has held steady around 1,650-1,700 employees for three years, suggesting no imminent layoffs but limited hiring growth as of mid-2026.
- Who owns Dong-A ST?
- Dong-A ST is a publicly traded company on the Korea Exchange under ticker 170900, majority-controlled by parent Dong-A Socio Holdings Co., Ltd. (KRX: 000640). Its market capitalization was approximately 350 billion KRW (roughly $233-250 million) as of July 26, 2026.
Timeline
- 2026-05-26Supreme Court finalizes 9.63% drug price cut ruling against Dong-A ST, no reversal possible
- 2026-04-27Q1 2026 operating profit reported at 10.77 billion KRW, up 53.7% YoY (standalone)
- 2026-02-10FY2025 record revenue of 745.1 billion KRW reported, up 16.3% YoY
- 2026-02-09FY2025 operating profit falls 16.1% YoY to 27.2 billion KRW
- 2026-01-28IMULDOSA receives Canadian approval, reaching 19 countries total
- 2024-10-11US FDA approves IMULDOSA (ustekinumab-srlf), fifth Stelara biosimilar
- 2023-09-08WHO conducts GMP inspection of Dong-A ST's Cheonan manufacturing site
- 2013Group restructuring splits Dong-A Socio Holdings, Dong-A Pharmaceutical, and Dong-A ST
- 1932Company origins trace to Dong-A Pharmaceutical founding as Seoul medicine wholesaler
Revision history
26 July 2026
First assessed. Defensible for now. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
In the same band
Sources
- Dong-A ST achieves record annual revenue fueled by prescription drug and overseas growth (2026-02-10)
- 동아ST, 작년 영업익 272억… 전년比 16.1% 감소 (2026-02-09)
- 동아에스티, 1분기 영업이익... (2026-04-27)
- US FDA Approves Dong-A ST's IMULDOSA (2024-10-11)
- 동아에스티, 스텔라라 시밀러 '이뮬도사' 캐나다 품목허가 획득 (2026-01-28)
- FDA Approves Imuldosa, a Fifth Biosimilar to Stelara (2024-10-11)
- Imuldosa (ustekinumab-srlf) FDA Approval History
- Korea's top court backs drug price cuts, rebuffs Dong-A ST... (2026-05-26)
- gurufocus.com (2026-07-26)
- 170900) Company Profile & Description (2026-07-10)
- Inspection Report for WHO
- Korea's biopharma giants hit trillion-won profits... (2026-02-06)