BlackRock, the world’s leading asset manager, has become a significant shareholder in HLB, a South Korean biotechnology company, as the US FDA reviews its key liver cancer drug candidate.
According to a regulatory filing by HLB on Wednesday, BlackRock Fund Advisors now holds 6,664,921 HLB shares, representing a 5.01 percent stake, as of February 24. The filing indicates that the stock purchase was made on-exchange for simple investment purposes.
HLB’s founder and chairman, Jin Yang-gon, remains the largest shareholder with a 7.23 percent stake as of the third quarter of the previous year, according to the company’s report.
Companies are legally obligated to report when an investor’s holdings exceed 5 percent. Therefore, the exact amount BlackRock paid for the HLB stock is not publicly available. On February 24, the date the regulatory filing requirement was met, HLB’s stock price closed at 52,600 won ($35.50).
Despite the recent substantial stock acquisition by BlackRock, HLB shares experienced a decline on Wednesday, mirroring the overall downward trend in the Kospi and Kosdaq indices. This decline coincided with escalating tensions in the Middle East following recent US-Israeli actions in Iran. As of 1:42 p.m., HLB, listed on the Kosdaq, traded at 47,550 won per share, a 12.11 percent decrease from the previous day’s closing price.
BlackRock’s investment history with HLB dates back to December 2020, when the asset management firm initially acquired a 5.07 percent stake, marking the first time its ownership surpassed the 5 percent threshold.
Market analysts estimate that BlackRock’s average purchase price at that time ranged between 150,000 won and 200,000 won per share, based on HLB’s prevailing stock price. BlackRock subsequently reduced its HLB holdings, eventually divesting its entire stake after 2021.
Industry observers attribute BlackRock’s renewed interest in HLB to the ongoing FDA review of Rivoceranib, HLB’s investigational liver cancer treatment. The FDA’s decision is anticipated on July 23. HLB has previously faced setbacks in securing FDA approval for Rivoceranib on two prior occasions.
hwkan
