(Yicai Global) May 13 -- BGI Genomics reportedly started to lay off employees and shed assets in February because of operational difficulties at the Chinese gene-sequencing giant.

Many of the Shenzhen-based company's divisions are overstaffed, finance magazine China Entrepreneur reported today, citing Lin Xiang, a middle manager who just left the firm. A third of the employees in her former division were let go, she added.

The listed firm's net profit fell last year for the first time since 2015, dipping 2.9 percent to CNY387 million (USD56.3 million) on a 21 percent gain in operating revenue to CNY2.5 billion, its annual earnings report showed on April 25.

The media were skeptical about the figures because regulators in Shenzhen ordered BGI Genomics to undergo "rectification" in early April because of the way it calculated income from orders. That resulted in CNY13.3 million and CNY12.4 million being added to revenue and profit, respectively, in 2017.

BGI Genomics' parent company BGI Holdings was founded in 1999. It has since been expanding business and has formed a huge business ecosystem consisting of many subsidiaries in the health, agriculture and maritime sectors.

BGI Holdings set up a skin care division in April 2018, only to close it early this April, China Entrepreneur reported, adding that seven employees in the division had signed severance deals.

BGI Holdings agreed to sell its agriculture business to real estate developer Country Garden last August, an informed source said. The two sides are in talks and have not concluded the deal yet, Country Garden said in an official response.

YH Global, affiliated to Hong Kong-listed Yee Hop Holdings, also plans to buy a 70 percent stake in BGI Marine Sci & Tech from BGI Holdings for CNY85 million (USD12.4 million), Yee Hop Holdings said in October. That deal completed on March 5.

BGI Holdings does not disclose financial results, but its performance is reflected in the numbers for its listed subsidiary BGI Genomics. "BGI Genomics is the best-performing listed firm among all BGI units," Lin said.

Shares of BGI Genomics [SHE:300676] rose 3 percent today to close at CNY64.69 (USD9.41) each, while the benchmark Shenzhen Component Index fell 1.4 percent.