Otsuka Holdings Co., Ltd.

Otsuka Holdings has revised upward its full-year earnings forecast for the fiscal year ending December 2026. The company raised its operating profit forecast by 30.3 percent from the previous projection to 469 billion yen, and its profit attributable to owners of the parent by 34.0 percent to 355 billion yen. It also plans to increase the annual dividend to 200 yen this fiscal year, up from 140 yen in the previous year. In the first half, revenue rose 12.8 percent year on year to 1.3323 trillion yen, operating profit increased 15.0 percent to 278.5 billion yen, and profit attributable to owners of the parent grew 24.3 percent to 215.6 billion yen, marking higher revenue and profit. The upward revision was supported by strong sales of its main antipsychotic drug Rexulti and an improved selling, general and administrative expense ratio due to cost optimization. The share price climbed further after the earnings release and has risen about 10 percent over the past month.

A new report from DelveInsight reveals that more than 28 companies are actively developing over 30 pipeline drugs for tuberculosis. Key players include Biofabri, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, GlaxoSmithKline, Archivel Farma, BioNTech, CanSino Biologics Inc., Medincell, and others, with promising therapies such as MTBVAC, Quabodepistat, GSK3036656, RUTI, BNT164, and Ad5-105K in various clinical stages. Approximately four-plus drugs are in late-stage development, and notable mechanisms of action include leucyl-tRNA synthetase inhibitors, immunostimulants, and DprE1 protein inhibitors. The report also highlights recent milestones, including the first patient dosed in a Phase IIb trial of alpibectir-ethionamide in March 2026 and the initiation of a new cohort in the IMAGINE trial of MTBVAC in February 2026.