(Yicai Global) Aug. 16 -- Chinese biotech firm Sino Biological, which priced its shares higher than any other firm has ever done on the mainland, saw its stock price surge on its first trading day amid a big Covid-19-related sales boost.

Shares of Sino Biological [SHE: 301047] more than doubled to CNY599.96 (USD92.70) intraday, after which they closed 68.4 percent up at CNY493.32. Its market cap was CNY33.5 billion (USD5.2 billion). The initial public offering stock price was CNY292.92.

The Beijing-based reagent supplier raised CNY5 billion (USD769 million) via its IPO, based on the issuing price.

Low P/E ratio

Although Sino Biological’s IPO price is high, the corresponding price-to-earnings ratio is only 18, far below the sector's average of 147, according to an analyst who cited data from China Securities last month.

The medical company is growing fast due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Last year, the firm reported a nearly 30-fold increase in net profit to CNY1.1 billion from 2019. Its revenue was CNY1.6 billion, rising by almost nine times. More than a fifth of the total was made up of income related to the Covid-19 epidemic.

Founded in 2007, Sino Biological sells recombinant proteins, antibodies, and cDNA clones. It also offers pre-clinical production services for pharmaceutical firms, according to its prospectus.

The pandemic is not over yet as the company's sales prove. In the first half, sales climbed by 21 percent to 41 percent to a sum between CNY600 million and CNY700 million (at least USD92.6 million). Net profit climbed as much as 49 percent to CNY500 million.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi