Samsung Brothers' Diverging Fortunes... Record High SDI vs. Continuous Weakness in Biologics

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] Among Samsung Group stocks, Samsung SDI and Samsung Biologics, which are among the top in market capitalization, have recently shown divergent trends. While Samsung SDI has surpassed its all-time high, Samsung Biologics continues to show weakness. Recently, their KOSPI market cap rankings have also reversed.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 18th, Samsung SDI rose to 818,000 KRW during the previous trading session, setting a new all-time high. It has been rising continuously recently, attempting to stabilize above 800,000 KRW. Samsung SDI has increased by 9.67% this month. Since the beginning of this year, it has risen more than 28%.

On the other hand, Samsung Biologics has been struggling this month. It has declined by 0.88% this month, with only three days showing an upward trend. Samsung Biologics, which recorded an all-time high intraday price of 883,000 KRW on the 11th of last month, has continued a weak trend due to fatigue from the rise and price burden after reaching its peak.

Due to the contrasting stock price trends, the market cap rankings of the two sibling companies have also reversed. On the 9th, Samsung SDI overtook Samsung Biologics to rise to 5th place, while Samsung Biologics dropped to 6th. Samsung Biologics further fell to 7th place on the 16th.

Samsung SDI, expected to turn profitable in electric vehicle batteries this year, is anticipated to continue its strong performance. Lee Changmin, a researcher at KB Securities, said, "This year will be the first year of Samsung SDI's electric vehicle battery profitability turnaround," adding, "This year's performance is expected to show sales of 13.9 trillion KRW and operating profit of 1.1 trillion KRW, increasing by 23% and 61% respectively compared to the previous year."

Despite recent hesitation due to stock price rise pressure, Samsung Biologics is still expected to continue rapid growth this year with increased utilization of its Plant 3. Yuhanhui, a researcher at Ebest Investment & Securities, said, "The utilization rate of Plant 3 rose to about 50% in the fourth quarter of last year and is expected to reach 80% this year," adding, "With the full operation of Plant 3 this year, maximum sales are anticipated."

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