The combined operating profit of the top 10 companies by market capitalization in the South Korean stock market falls short of those of leading Japanese company Toyota and top Taiwanese company TSMC.To address the “Korea discount,” which refers to the undervaluation of South Korean stocks, it is poi
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at esshim@nhqv.com -- Ed.GnBS Eco is a manufacturer of eco-friendly equipment, including plasma scrubbers for use in the production of semiconductors, displays, and solar panels. We foresee the materialization of a steep earn
The value of overseas construction orders to Korean contractors exceeded US$30 billion for the fourth year in a row in 2023. Korean builders’ target for 2024 is US$40 billion. They have been looking for opportunities in overseas markets as the Korean real estate market has been slumping for a long t
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at hzl.lee@nhqv.com -- Ed.Excluding losses at YG Investment, YG Ent’s 4Q23 results met our expectations. BabyMonster’s first debut album, which is to feature the return of main member Ahyeon, is to be released on Apr 1. We e
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at bk@nhqv.com -- Ed.Global stock markets have rallied of late, with the S&P500 surging for four months in a row. In February, the Kospi has outperformed other major markets. But, the fast market growth is likely to bolster p
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at junsup@nhqv.com -- Ed.From now forward, we believe that the key to determining the value of financial sector plays is to be the existence of specific shareholder return policies and the market's level of trust in them.Boos
Domestic game companies are putting significant effort into capturing the Middle East market. Based on “oil money,” this region possesses high financial power and purchasing capability but is still an untapped market due to inadequate communication infrastructure and other issues. Although the uncer
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at junsup@nhqv.com -- Ed.At Hyundai M&F, 2024E P/B sits at only 0.39x, well below that for Samsung F&M (0.76x) and DB Insurance (0.59x). Although its shareholder return momentum is weak, Hyundai M&F offers limited valuation b
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaemin.ahn@nhqv.com -- Ed.With the launch of Crimson Desert having been postponed to 2025, operating losses appear inevitable for Pearl Abyss in 2024. However, as Crimson Desert is an AAA-grade new game targeting the globa
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. She can be reached at jiyoony@nhqv.com -- Ed.C&C International’s 4Q23 results met consensus, if excluding incentive compensation. As of 1Q24, domestic and North America-focused orders are up 80% y-y. Backed by hit products from multiple indie
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at jaekwang.rhee@nhqv.com -- Ed.Both 4Q23 and 2023 earnings reached historic highs. This year, earnings should remain steady, with share price momentum being driven by an uptick in overseas orders. KAI is targeting 2024 aircr
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at sokang@shinhan.com -- Ed.4Q23 review: New game and profitability disappointNCsoft registered operating profit of KRW3.9bn (-91.9% YoY, -76.7% QoQ, operating margin of 0.9%) on sales of KRW437.7bn (-20.1% YoY, +3.5% QoQ) for 4Q23,
Coway Co., Ltd., the “Best Life Solution Company,” has released its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2023."We’re proud to have achieved such a successful 2023, even in the face of significant challenges present in both domestic and international markets. Our stable performanc
SK innovation reported on Feb. 6 that its revenue for the last year amounted to 77.2885 trillion won (US$58.2400 billion) with an operating profit of 1.9039 trillion won. Compared to the previous year, revenue and operating profit decreased by 0.98% and 51%, respectively.In the fourth quarter of las
U.S.-based Aptiv, Hyundai Motor Group’s partner in autonomous driving technology development, will stop funding for its joint venture with the Korean automaker Motional. After six years of preparations, the company’s commercialization of unmanned autonomous taxis (robotaxis) has been delayed and its
The sale of ECORBIT, which is considered the key element in the normalization of Taeyoung Engineering & Construction, is gaining momentum with the selection of lead managers. UBS and Citigroup Global Markets Securities, two global investment banks (IBs), have been assigned the task.According to sour
Kia Corp.’s market capitalization has outstripped Hyundai Motor’s. The automaker’s record-breaking earnings and strong shareholder return policy paid off handsomely, stock market experts say. Some of them believe that there is a remaining upside as the price-to-earnings ratio (PBR) is still below 1x
The author is an analyst for NH Investment & Securities. He can be reached at bk@nhqv.com -- Ed.The two terms that defined last year’s stock market were ‘new cold war’ and ‘supply chain reshaping’. In 2024, decoupling between DMs and EMs is to become a new market-defining feature. Today, the US’s bu
SK hynix has announced plans to release its 5th generation High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), named HBM3E, this year, and aims to launch HBM4 by 2026.Kim Chun-hwan, vice president of SK hynix, revealed these plans during his keynote speech at SEMICON Korea 2024, held at COEX in the Samseong neighborhood o
Samsung Electronics has forecasted a return to profit for its memory business in the first quarter. The company is confident in the continuous recovery of the memory industry, driven by the growth of the artificial intelligence (AI) market. Consequently, Samsung Electronics plans to significantly in