Kakao Group Stocks, Mixed Market Cap Fortunes

Kakao Surpasses Samba to 4th Place
Bandoeng Games Reclaims 5th Position
Struggling Kbank Circles Around 10th Place
Cafe Fluctuates Around 10th Place

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] As Kakao Pay went public, the Kakao Group stocks, which have grown even larger, are experiencing mixed fortunes due to changes in market capitalization rankings.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 5th, Kakao surpassed Samsung Biologics to rank 4th in KOSPI market capitalization the previous day. Kakao had been competing with Samsung Biologics for 4th place since August, but after regulatory issues arose in September, its stock price fell, remaining in 5th or 6th place until last month. Since the end of last month, the stock price rebounded, initiating a move to reclaim 4th place, and it closed at 130,000 KRW, up more than 4% the previous day. This marks the recovery of the stock price to the 130,000 KRW level after about two months. Accordingly, Kakao’s stock price has risen more than 17% in the past month. The regulatory issues that had been holding back the stock price since September are easing, and expectations for overseas business are growing. Samsung Securities analyst Oh Donghwan said, "Focusing on expanding overseas business centered on content and blockchain, we expect visible results starting next year," adding, "Despite regulatory issues and the announcement of a win-win plan, the fundamental competitiveness of the core business has not been damaged, and after the conclusion of the National Assembly audit, regulatory issues will gradually ease and the stock price will gradually recover."

Kakao Games has also succeeded in a recent rebound, showing strong stock performance. Its market capitalization ranking has also regained 5th place. Kakao Games showed an upward trend from the end of June due to the success of ‘Odin,’ with the stock price touching 100,000 KRW in July, but then retreated to around 60,000 KRW last month amid a general downturn in gaming stocks. Since mid-last month, continuous institutional buying has led to a turnaround, and the stock price rose to 98,000 KRW intraday the previous day. As of 9:35 AM that day, it was trading at 94,900 KRW, up 3,600 KRW (4.06%) from the previous day. The stock price increase rate over the past month reached 44%. NH Investment & Securities analyst Ahn Jaemin evaluated, "The good performance of Odin continues, and with the acquisition of Odin’s developer Lionheart, significant earnings growth is expected next year," adding, "The strategy to expand into new areas such as global markets, metaverse, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is also positive."

On the other hand, Kakao Bank continues to show sluggish performance. Although Kakao Bank, which showed weakness last month, has recently attempted a rebound, it has not settled within the top 10 in market capitalization. Kakao Bank, which reclaimed 10th place by overtaking Celltrion at the end of last month, lost the 10th spot back to Celltrion on the 3rd. That day, it also showed a decline of over 3%, falling below the 60,000 KRW level again. The stock price has been stagnant over the past month. Kyobo Securities analyst Kim Jiyoung said, "The current stock price is considered somewhat high compared to the appropriate price-to-book ratio (PBR)," adding, "Reflecting recent changes in the domestic environment related to mortgage loans and downward revisions of assumptions for the overall mortgage loan market growth rate, we are lowering the investment opinion from ‘buy’ to ‘hold.’"

Kakao Pay, which was listed on the 3rd, has yet to stabilize as its stock price has been highly volatile. On the first day of listing, it rose more than 7%, entering KOSPI at 13th place in market capitalization, but on the second day, it plunged more than 12%, dropping five ranks to 18th place. That day, it showed a strong rise again by more than 3%, climbing to 14th place. With its current market capitalization level, Kakao Pay is expected to be eligible for early inclusion in the KOSPI 200. If a newly listed stock ranks within the top 50 in market capitalization among all common stocks in KOSPI during the first 15 trading days after listing, it qualifies for special inclusion as a newly listed stock.

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