(Yicai) Feb. 28 -- BeiGene's stock rose after the biotech company reported its net loss shrank 26 percent last year from the prior one while turning its first positive adjusted operating profit driven by a surge in revenue.

Shares of BeiGene [SHA: 688235] jumped 5.2 percent to CNY237.76 (USD32.63) each as of 2.05 p.m. in Shanghai today. Its Hong Kong-traded stock [HKG: 6160] climbed 2.6 percent to HKD165.80 (USD21.31).

Net loss was CNY5 billion (USD686.2 million) in the 12 months ended Dec. 31, while revenue surged 56 percent to CNY27.2 billion (USD3.7 billion) from the year before, BeiGene said in a financial report yesterday. Its adjusted operating profit was CNY528 million (USD72.5 million).

BeiGene expects income to jump to between USD4.9 billion and USD5.3 billion this year, it noted.

The surge in revenue was mainly thanks to sales soaring 74 percent, led by a strong performance of its self-developed Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor Brukinsa, products licensed to California-based Amgen, and  anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody treatment Tevimbra, BeiGene noted.

Sales of Brukinsa soared 106 percent to CNY18.9 billion last year from 2023, with those in the US surging 108 percent to CNY13.9 billion. Tevimbra's sales rose 17.4 percent to CNY4.5 billion thanks to expanded patient access following the inclusion of new indications in China's national reimbursement drug list and increased hospital use.

Editor: Maritn Kadiev