[Click eStock] "Hyundai Steel, Record High Performance Expected This Year... It's Okay to Buy Now"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ji Yeon-jin] BNK Investment & Securities announced on the 28th that it is raising the target price of Hyundai Steel to 80,000 KRW, as the company's consolidated operating profit for the first quarter of this year significantly exceeded expectations, and record-high performance is expected this year.

Hyundai Steel's consolidated operating profit for the first quarter reached 303.9 billion KRW, surpassing market expectations by more than 60%. Although the sales estimates were not significantly different from expectations, the input costs rose less than anticipated due to the raw material lagging effect, and profits improved due to restructuring effects in thin hot-rolled steel and color steel sheets. This is the first time in three years since the second quarter of 2018 that quarterly operating profit has exceeded 300 billion KRW.

The operating profit for the second quarter of this year is expected to reach a record high of 500 billion KRW. The previous highest profit was 482.2 billion KRW in the fourth quarter of 2014. This strong performance is because price increases for key products such as cold-rolled steel and rebar will be fully reflected starting from the second quarter. Although the price increase for cold-rolled steel has not yet been finalized, an increase of at least 50,000 to 60,000 KRW is expected. Rebar prices have already increased by 88,000 KRW per ton since April. Prices for shipbuilding-oriented thick plates also rose by about 100,000 KRW since March, so second-quarter performance is expected to jump again.

Kim Hyun-tae, a researcher at BNK Investment & Securities, said, "All steel companies are rapidly rising based on recent market conditions and performance improvements that exceeded expectations, and concerns about corporate value are increasing, but Hyundai Steel is one of the few steel companies that can be purchased without such concerns," adding, "The conclusion is 'It is okay to buy now.'"

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