Guosen Securities has released a research report stating that domestic innovative drugs have demonstrated excellent clinical data, with the trend of overseas expansion continuing. The research and development capabilities of these drugs are gaining recognition from multinational pharmaceutical companies. The CXO sector remains the strongest investment theme within healthcare, supported by improving global investment and financing, a recovery in domestic R&D demand, and solid medium-to-long-term competitiveness. An aging population is driving increased demand for home-use medical devices, while policy benefits are favoring the consolidation of leading chain pharmacy operators. Surgical robots are receiving policy support, with accelerated overseas expansion of domestic endoscopic and orthopedic systems. The main views of Guosen Securities are as follows.
Clinical development for innovative drugs continues to advance. Recently, domestic innovative drugs have presented outstanding clinical data at academic conferences. Attention is advised for major upcoming academic meetings in the second quarter, such as ASCO. Since the first quarter of 2026, the overseas expansion trend for domestic innovative drugs has persisted. Multi-project cooperation agreements based on technological platforms indicate that the R&D capabilities of China's innovative drugs are increasingly recognized by multinational pharmaceutical companies, with sustained demonstration of efficiency and cost advantages.
Investment opportunities in the CXO industry are noteworthy. Based on short-term performance and long-term global competitiveness, the firm believes CXO remains the strongest investment theme in the healthcare sector. From the R&D perspective internationally, investment and financing have improved, leading to a moderate recovery in global pharmaceutical R&D. Domestically, innovative drug development is thriving, driving a rebound in preclinical demand and medium-to-high growth in the number of clinical approvals. From the development and manufacturing perspective, in the small molecule field, China's solid chemical capabilities, sufficient compliant capacity, and strong engineer dividend ensure stable medium-to-long-term competitiveness. In the large molecule field, the industry is experiencing medium-to-high growth, with deepening cooperation between Chinese companies and multinational corporations. Recommended companies to watch include WuXi AppTec, WuXi XDC, Asymchem Laboratories, Apeloa Pharmaceutical, Pharmaron, and Joinn Laboratories.
Strong consumption attributes and expectations for a rebound in undervalued home-use medical device and chain pharmacy segments are viewed positively. With a deepening aging population and volume growth of certain popular products, the home-use medical device sector is showing characteristics of broad long-term market potential and medium-to-short-term structural strong growth. Improved domestic consumption conditions are expected to boost demand for home-use devices. The outlook is favorable for domestic home-use medical device companies with well-established high-end product portfolios and rapid overseas progress, such as Yuwell, Resmed, Cofoe, and Sinocare.
Recent nationwide retail pharmacy policies promote industry development towards compliance, professionalism, and consolidation. Amidst industry integration, leading chain pharmacies are expected to leverage strong acquisition capabilities and accumulated efficient supply chains and management models to gradually increase market share. It is advised to monitor leading chain pharmacy companies with marginal improvements in performance and strong cross-regional operational capabilities, such as Yifeng Pharmacy, China National Medicines, and Dashenlin.
Investment opportunities in surgical robots warrant attention. On January 20, the National Healthcare Security Administration issued the "Guidelines for Establishing Price Items for Surgical and Treatment-Assisted Medical Services (Trial)". These guidelines establish pricing items for navigation, participation in execution, and precision execution, breaking traditional restrictions related to surgical access, application site, and brand origin, thereby allowing reasonable fee standards for the clinical application of intelligent innovative products. The overseas expansion of endoscopic and orthopedic surgical robots is accelerating. As of February 12, MicroPort's Toumai surgical robot had secured over 200 global commercial orders, covering nearly 50 countries and regions, with nearly 130 commercial installations completed. Tinavi's orthopedic surgical navigation and positioning system and tool kit have obtained CE certification, facilitating multi-channel expansion into overseas markets.
The March 2026 investment portfolio includes A-shares: Mindray Bio-Medical, United Imaging Healthcare, WuXi AppTec, Snibe, Intco Medical, Amoy Diagnostics, GemPharmatech, KingMed Diagnostics, Aier Eye Hospital, Yuwell, Yifeng Pharmacy, Dashenlin; H-shares: Akeso, Kelun-B, HUTCHMED, Keymed-B, 3SBio, Gushengtang, and AK Medical. Risk warnings include R&D failure risk, commercialization falling short of expectations, geopolitical risk, and policy exceeding expectations risk.