DAIICHI SANKYO COMPANY, LIMITED
4568・Prime Market・Pharmaceuticals
Business
Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited is a global drug discovery company consisting of the Company together with 43 subsidiaries and 1 affiliated company, totaling 45 companies, whose main business is the research and development, manufacturing, and sale of pharmaceuticals. Built on its proprietary DXd ADC (antibody-drug conjugate) technology platform, the Company deploys oncology-focused products worldwide, centered on ENHERTU (trastuzumab deruxtecan: T-DXd/DS-8201) (an anti-HER2 ADC) and DATROWAY (datopotamab deruxtecan: Dato-DXd/DS-1062) (an anti-TROP2 ADC). It has business bases in Japan, the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America, and advances global development and sales through strategic alliances with AstraZeneca and Merck & Co. (U.S.). Revenue for FY2026 (ending March 2025) reached ¥2,123,045 million, and the Company is accelerating its business focus on the oncology field.
Business Model
For ENHERTU and DATROWAY, the company has entered into profit-and-cost-sharing co-development and commercialization alliances with AstraZeneca covering the world excluding Japan, and for three products including HER3-DXd, with Merck (U.S.) under similar terms. Under this structure, the company creates and manufactures the products in-house while leveraging its partners' sales networks for global expansion, enabling it to capture large-scale revenue while diversifying R&D risk. Domestically, the company sells directly, while overseas it combines sales through local subsidiaries and partners; the Oncology Business Unit (Western oncology products) accounts for approximately 38% of revenue.
Company Strengths
ENHERTU achieved revenue of ¥819.5 billion in FY2026 (ending March 2026) (up 25.8% year-on-year), establishing a firm position as a core global product. Its proprietary linker-payload technology (DXd) delivers high antitumor efficacy and selectivity, and it has successively obtained new indications such as HER2-low and HER2-ultralow breast cancer. Five DXd ADCs form the development pipeline, making technical imitation highly difficult.
The company has entered into worldwide profit-sharing collaborations with AstraZeneca for ENHERTU and DATROWAY, and with Merck & Co., Inc. (US) for HER3-DXd, I-DXd, and R-DXd. This structure allows the company to focus on product creation and manufacturing while leveraging its partners' sales infrastructure and financial strength. Upfront payments, milestone payments, and royalty income from these alliances also supplement the revenue base.
As of the end of FY2026 (ending March 2026), total assets stood at ¥4,005.4 billion and total equity at ¥1,664.2 billion. The company holds a long-term rating of AA (stable) from R&I and A2 (stable) from Moody's. It maintains a domestic bond shelf registration of ¥400 billion and a CP issuance limit of ¥150 billion, and in 2025 issued ¥200 billion in unsecured bonds with maturities ranging from 3 to 10 years. These high ratings enable low-cost financing, supporting large-scale R&D and capital investment.
ENVALITH's Perspective
Performance Trend
Revenue expanded roughly twofold over five years, from ¥1,044,892 million in FY2022 to ¥2,123,045 million in FY2026, maintaining a 12.6% increase in revenue. Core operating profit came to ¥359,962 million, up 15.1%, indicating an improvement in recurring earnings power. On the other hand, the recording of one-off expenses of ¥152,974 million, including loss compensation to a contract manufacturer, caused operating profit to fall 31.0% year on year to ¥229,089 million. Profit attributable to owners of the parent declined 12.1% to ¥259,874 million. A sharp decrease in income tax expense, from ¥59,874 million in the prior period to ¥3,558 million, helped support profit for the period. As for external factors, the foreign exchange impact (at ¥150.78 to the US dollar) added ¥21.8 billion to revenue and ¥14.7 billion to profit. For FY2027 (ending March 2027), the company forecasts revenue of ¥2,280,000 million (+7.4%) and operating profit of ¥315,000 million (+37.5%), anticipating a profit recovery as the one-off expenses fall away.
Growth Strategy
Maximizing the value of the 5 DXd ADCs and identifying next-generation BGTs to achieve revenue of ¥3 trillion or more by FY2030 (ending March 2030)
Multiple approvals have already been obtained in Japan, the US, Europe, and China for HER2-low/ultra-low expressing breast cancer, HER2-positive solid tumors, second-line gastric cancer treatment, and other indications. More than 10 new approvals/applications were achieved in FY2026 (ending March 2026) alone. The company aims for oncology area revenue of ¥2,300 billion or more in FY2030 (ending March 2030), planning the launch of 20 or more indications over five years.
Approval and launch were achieved in June 2025 in Europe (HR+/HER2- breast cancer) and the US (EGFR-mutated NSCLC). In February 2026, an approval application for first-line TNBC treatment was submitted in the US and granted priority review designation. Revenue of the Oncology Business Unit increased 31.3% year on year to ¥608,800 million, to which this contributed.
For HER3-DXd, data from the HERTHENA-Lung02 trial were announced, and development continues for second-line NSCLC treatment. I-DXd received FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, and multiple Phase 3 trials have been initiated. R-DXd received FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation for ovarian cancer, and data from the Phase 2 portion of the REJOICE-Ovarian01 trial were announced.
Through productivity improvements leveraging AI, optimization of procurement processes via the introduction of a global common ERP platform, and the establishment of a new organization to centrally handle commercialization activities across all areas of the new drug business (scheduled to begin operations in April 2027), the company will achieve total cost optimization of ¥200 billion or more and improve profitability.
All shares of Daiichi Sankyo Healthcare Co., Ltd. will be transferred in stages to Suntory Holdings for ¥246,500 million (planned) from June 2026 to June 2029. The company will withdraw from the OTC business and concentrate management resources on the oncology business. The assets and liabilities to be transferred have already been classified as assets held for sale as of the end of FY2026 (March 2026).
A progressive dividend policy has been introduced for the Sixth Mid-Term Business Plan period, with an adjusted DOE of 10.0% or more set as the benchmark for dividend levels. The annual dividend for FY2026 (ending March 2026) is ¥78 (up ¥18 year on year), and the forecast for FY2027 (ending March 2027) is ¥100 (up ¥22). In FY2026 (ending March 2026), the company acquired 31.45 million treasury shares for ¥91.8 billion, and plans to cancel 31,457,200 shares on June 10, 2026.
Last updated: July 19, 2026