SK Materials Regains Ground Amid Strong Performance

Strong Q2 Earnings and Share Buybacks Boost Sentiment... Target Prices Raised One After Another

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] SK Materials, which has recently set new record highs day after day thanks to strong earnings, is also regaining its position in market capitalization.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 21st, SK Materials' market capitalization was 2.6675 trillion KRW based on the previous day's closing price, ranking 8th in the KOSDAQ. The company started the year in 8th place but fell below the top 10 by the end of January. Recently, it has shown continuous strength, initiating a comeback in market cap ranking. After entering the top 10 on the 17th, it rose back to 8th place in just one day.

SK Materials has been on a strong upward trend recently, supported by strong second-quarter earnings and favorable performance forecasts for the second half of the year. It has risen for six consecutive days. During the previous day's trading session, the stock price reached 259,700 KRW, setting a new 52-week high.

On the 16th, SK Materials announced that its second-quarter sales reached 227.4 billion KRW and operating profit was 56.57 billion KRW. These figures represent increases of 24.3% and 2.8%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Soh Hyuncheol, a researcher at Shinhan Financial Investment, analyzed, "The increase in operating rates of display manufacturers, growth in high value-added semiconductor precursors and tungsten hexafluoride (WF6), and stabilization of nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) prices contributed to second-quarter earnings exceeding consensus."

Stable earnings growth is expected to continue in the second half of the year. Lee Sunhak, a researcher at Hanwha Investment & Securities, stated, "We expect SK Materials' third-quarter sales to be 240.3 billion KRW and operating profit to be 62.3 billion KRW," adding, "This is because significant earnings growth will appear not only in existing businesses but also in new businesses such as hydrogen fluoride and high-selectivity phosphoric acid."

Due to favorable earnings forecasts, securities firms have successively raised their target prices for SK Materials. Hanwha Investment & Securities raised its target from 200,000 KRW to 280,000 KRW, Samsung Securities from 200,000 KRW to 270,000 KRW, and Daishin Securities from 200,000 KRW to 300,000 KRW. Korea Investment & Securities set it at 300,000 KRW, Hana Financial Investment at 290,000 KRW, and Shinhan Financial Investment at 270,000 KRW.

Share buybacks have also positively impacted the stock price. SK Materials decided to purchase 530,000 common shares on the market by October 16 to enhance shareholder value through stock price stabilization. The researcher said, "New businesses are starting, and with customer expansions next year, demand for each product will increase, making valuation rerating fully possible," adding, "The decision to buy back shares at the current stock price also reflects the company's high confidence."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.