HK Stock Market Move | CRO concept stocks lead the way in rising, with WuXi AppTec (02359) expected to double its net profit last year. The sector is expected to welcome a "Davis double-click".

Concept stocks in the CRO sector are leading the gains. As of the time of writing, WuXi AppTec (02359) rose by 8.48% to 120.2 Hong Kong dollars; Asymchem Laboratories (06821) rose by 7.4% to 91.4 Hong Kong dollars; Pharmaron Beijing (03759) rose by 7.13% to 24.64 Hong Kong dollars; Hangzhou Tigermed Consulting (03347) rose by 7.16% to 53 Hong Kong dollars; WUXI BIO (02269) rose by 5% to 39.46 Hong Kong dollars. In terms of news, on the evening of January 12, WuXi AppTec announced that the company is expected to achieve a total operating income of 45.456 billion yuan for the year, an increase of 15.84% year-on-year; of which, the income from continuing operations is expected to increase by about 21.40% year-on-year. The adjusted net profit attributable to the parent company is expected to be 14.957 billion yuan, an increase of about 41.33% year-on-year; the net profit attributable to the company's shareholders is expected to be 19.151 billion yuan, an increase of about 102.65% year-on-year. It is worth mentioning that WuXi AppTec previously raised its full-year performance guidance for the second time within a year when it released its third-quarter report for 2025: the overall revenue is expected to be raised from 42.5 billion to 43.5 billion yuan to 43.5 billion to 44 billion yuan; the income from continuing operations is expected to return to double-digit growth, with the growth rate raised from 13%-17% to 17%-18%. Zhongtai believes that the CRO and CDMO sectors will gradually recover as investment and financing gradually recover from the start of the overseas rate cut cycle in 2024Q4, the improvement of pessimistic expectations brought about by geopolitical negotiations in 2025Q2, and the landing of large-scale BD in domestic innovative drugs and the release of heavyweight policies in 2025. Demand is gradually recovering under multiple drives, coupled with the continuous clearance of the supply side in the past three years, the sector is expected to welcome a "Davis double hit" of simultaneous profit and valuation improvement, and it is recommended to focus on relevant investment opportunities. Industrial also stated that since Q4, there has been an increasing trend in prices from primate experiments, safety assessment quotations to clinical project prices, customer demand remains strong, and it is expected that the performance of the CRO industry in 2026 will enter an improvement cycle.