Foreign and Institutional Investors Dump Bad News Stocks, 'Ants' Buy from the Bottom

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] Individual investors are aggressively buying stocks that have plummeted due to domestic and international adverse factors.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 13th, the stock most purchased by individuals from the beginning of this month until the 10th was Kakao, with purchases totaling 990.9 billion KRW. During the same period, foreigners and institutions sold Kakao shares worth 303.7 billion KRW and 689.5 billion KRW, respectively. Following that, individual investors also bought KakaoBank (689.8 billion KRW), LG Chem (325.6 billion KRW), NAVER (321.8 billion KRW), NCSoft (293.1 billion KRW), and Samsung Electronics (231.6 billion KRW). The top stocks sold net by institutions were KakaoBank (748.1 billion KRW) and Samsung Electronics (565.4 billion KRW), while foreigners’ top net sales were Kakao (689.5 billion KRW), LG Chem (334.0 billion KRW), and NCSoft (270.1 billion KRW). This shows individuals absorbing stocks that foreigners and institutions have sold off amid negative factors causing sharp declines.

In the case of Kakao, KakaoBank, and NAVER, their stock prices have sharply dropped recently as they have become targets of online major platform regulations by political circles and financial authorities. Kakao traded around 150,000 KRW at the beginning of this month but is currently trading at about 130,000 KRW, down approximately 16%. KakaoBank’s stock price has fallen 20% this month, showing a decline for eight consecutive trading days due to the burden of the release of lock-up shares combined with regulatory issues. NAVER also dropped 6.6% this month, falling below the 400,000 KRW level, returning to the stock price level from three months ago.

LG Chem and NCSoft are still burdened by issues such as battery provisions and poor performance of new releases. For LG Chem, the recall decision by General Motors (GM) in the U.S. has raised concerns about provisions, casting doubt on whether LG Energy Solution’s goal to complete its listing within this year will be achieved. NCSoft’s stock price, which exceeded 1,000,000 KRW earlier this year, has halved to trade in the 590,000 KRW range due to the continued poor performance of its new release, ‘Blade & Soul 2.’

Regarding individuals betting on adverse factors affecting Kakao and NAVER, securities experts advise caution until uncertainties are resolved but generally analyze that the market is overly concerned. The decline in stock prices is driven by fears that payment platforms might disappear, but companies have already secured licenses and are conducting business, according to analysis. Researcher Ho-yoon Jung of Korea Investment & Securities explained, “The market values assigned to Naver Pay and Kakao Pay are around 10 to 15 trillion KRW, and the current stock price decline is excessive,” adding, “Concerns that the core competitiveness of payment platforms?selling and brokering various financial products through big data?might be lost are an overreaction.”

In the case of LG Chem and NCSoft, although they may show short-term sluggishness, their long-term growth potential remains valid. Researcher Choi-woon Choi of Korea Investment & Securities stated, “Since the electric vehicle market is still in its early stages, initial challenges are difficult, but long-term growth potential remains unchanged,” and explained, “LG Chem, as a leading company, inevitably experiences trial and error first.” Regarding NCSoft, there is also an opinion that expectations can be raised for the momentum from the upcoming release of Lineage W, which was developed for the global market in the fourth quarter.

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