(Yicai) April 22 -- Fosun Pharmaceutical Group said the Chinese drugmaker plans to increase its stake in Henlius Biotech after its plan to take the firm private was rejected. Shares of both companies gained.

Henlius [HKG: 2696] closed up 11.6 percent at HKD37.90 (USD4.89) a share in Hong Kong today, while Fosun Pharma [SHA: 600196; HKG: 2196] rose 2.1 percent to CNY24.40 (USD3.34) in Shanghai and 4 percent to HKD14.54 in Hong Kong. 

The market capitalization of Henlius, a Shanghai-based biopharmaceutical firm, has soared 60 percent so far this year to HKD20.6 billion (USD2.7 billion), after net profit jumped 50 percent to CNY820 million (USD112.2 million) last year on a 6 percent gain in revenue to CNY5.7 billion (USD780 million). Henlius turned profitable in 2023.

Fosun Pharma agreed to buy 21 million non-tradable shares of Henlius at HKD24.60 apiece from minority shareholders for a total of HKD517 million (USD66.6 million), the Shanghai-based company announced yesterday. Afterward, its stake in the target company will increase to 63.4 percent from 59.6 percent.

Fosun Pharma offered last June to take Henlius private by buying all of the shares that it did not already own for as much as HKD5.4 billion (USD696 million). That plan was scuppered after it faced opposition from minority shareholders during a vote in January.

Founded in 2010, Henlius has six products on the market targeting oncology and autoimmune diseases. Four of them are available in China and overseas, according to its website.

In the past, Henlius expanded internationally through licensing and intellectual property partnerships. But now the firm plans to take a more active role in overseas operations, starting with Japan, where it aims to build a local commercialization team, Li Jin, its vice president of regulatory affairs, said at a recent investor event.

Editor: Futura Costaglione