[Featured Stock] SK Innovation Rises on Upgraded Investment Opinion and Strong Earnings Expectations

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] SK Innovation is showing an upward trend, supported by buy reports from foreign securities firms and expectations of strong earnings.

As of 3:11 PM on the 30th, SK Innovation is trading at 296,000 KRW, up 4.78% from the previous trading day. During the day, SK Innovation's price surged to 297,500 KRW.

The upgrade of SK Innovation's investment rating to 'Overweight' by the foreign securities firm JP Morgan is considered a major factor. JP Morgan presented a target price of 400,000 KRW, citing a positive outlook for the raw materials business sector and a significant increase in operating profit from the electric vehicle (EV) business.

It is also positive that the second-quarter earnings are expected to significantly exceed market expectations. Initially, a decline in profit was anticipated due to the disappearance of inventory valuation gains caused by rising oil prices in the first quarter, but strong performance in the lubricants and petrochemical sectors is expected to lead to a substantial increase in operating profit in the refining sector. Hwang Kyu-won, a researcher at Yuanta Securities, explained, “With the effect of COVID-19 vaccines, global crude oil demand at the end of the year is expected to improve by 4% compared to the first half, recovering to 100 million barrels, but many refining facilities are shutting down, which will improve supply and demand conditions.”

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