[Click eStock] "YG Entertainment, Abundant Stock Growth Factors Including BLACKPINK Concert"

KTB Investment & Securities Report

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] KTB Investment & Securities maintained a buy rating and a target price of 57,000 KRW for YG Entertainment on the 20th. This is based on the judgment that there are abundant events that can drive a short-term stock price increase, such as the comeback of affiliated artists and the holding of online concerts.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In the fourth quarter of last year, YG Entertainment's sales are estimated to have increased by 11.6% year-on-year to 73 billion KRW. Operating profit is expected to decrease by 3.3% to 6.8 billion KRW during the same period but is likely to meet the market expectation of 7.1 billion KRW.

Album revenue recorded 16.9 billion KRW, growing 680.6% compared to the same period last year, expected to set a record for the highest album sales on a quarterly basis. Total sales volume reached 1.67 million copies, marking the first time quarterly sales exceeded 1 million copies. BLACKPINK sold 1.3 million copies, and some of the stock was distributed in North America and Europe, which likely incurred additional production costs.

In the first quarter, the artist lineup, including Treasure's full album and BLACKPINK's Ros? solo, is expected to be stronger than anticipated, resulting in favorable performance. Sales are estimated to grow 27.8% year-on-year to 67.5 billion KRW, and operating profit is expected to turn positive at 4.5 billion KRW.

On the 31st of this month, BLACKPINK will hold their first online concert. Ticket prices are set at 36,000 KRW (live broadcast and replay) and 45,000 KRW (live broadcast, replay, and behind-the-scenes content), and the concert will be streamed via YouTube. Researcher Nam Hyoji of KTB Investment & Securities analyzed, "Although they are the last among major agencies to hold an online concert, they have a massive fandom with 55.9 million YouTube subscribers, so the difference in audience numbers compared to artists who have already held concerts will be significant."

Album sales this year are expected to reach 3.45 million copies, a 27% increase compared to the same period last year. Assuming offline performances will begin in the second half of the year, sales are projected to grow 34.5% year-on-year to 335.4 billion KRW, and operating profit is expected to increase by 237.1% to 32.7 billion KRW. Researcher Nam Hyoji said, "Album sales growth will continue thanks to the activities of BLACKPINK and Treasure," adding, "It is positive that the monetization speed of artists is faster than in the past."

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