[Click eStock] "Kukon, Margin Improvement Alongside Growth"

Operating Profit Margin in Data Sector Rises... Expected to Reach 30% Range
Hi Investment & Securities "New Target Price for Cucon Set at 110,000 Won"

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] Kukon is improving its margins along with external growth. Securities firms advise actively buying even if the stock price fluctuates due to the listing of new shares from the upcoming bonus issue.

On the 25th, Hi Investment & Securities newly issued a 'Buy' rating and a target price of 110,000 KRW for Kukon. The closing price on the previous day was 77,300 KRW.

Kukon is a company that provides standardized data through the stages of data collection, connection, and organization. Established in 2006, it has over 15 years of experience and infrastructure accumulated in the data business. Kukon's business model is connected with financial institutions and fintech companies, creating an environment difficult for latecomers to enter.

Kukon is showing sales growth. This year, Kukon's sales growth rate is expected to reach 24.9%. Based on the MyData business, which will be fully implemented from January next year, mid- to long-term high growth is also anticipated.

Thanks to the relatively high operating profit margin in the data sector, margin improvement is also underway. The reason for the high margin in the data sector is that there is no cost of sales incurred during the data collection process. Kukon's operating profit margin, which was around 13% in 2018, is expected to rise to 26% this year.

Hyun-ki Kim, a researcher at Hi Investment & Securities, said, "From next year, the sales proportion of the data sector will surpass that of the payment sector," and "due to the change in sales proportion, the operating profit margin is expected to rise to the 30% range."

There may be stock price adjustments due to the listing of new shares from the upcoming bonus issue. This month, Kukon conducted a bonus issue at a ratio of 0.25 shares per share to meet the capital requirements for data-specialized institutions under the Credit Information Act.

Researcher Kim said, "The listing date of the new shares is scheduled for December 20, and the stock price may fluctuate around that date," but added, "Considering Kukon's operational competitiveness and industry growth, active buying is recommended during stock price adjustments."

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