[Click eStock] "LX International, Strong Earnings Momentum and Currency Effects... Target Price Up"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jaehee] NH Investment & Securities maintained a 'Buy' rating on LX International on the 15th and raised the target price from 50,000 KRW to 60,000 KRW.

LX International's Q3 performance this year is expected to show sales of 5.0728 trillion KRW and operating profit of 233.1 billion KRW. This represents increases of 13% and 11%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.

By business segment, operating profit in the resources sector is expected to increase by 4% year-on-year to 100.5 billion KRW. The trading and new growth sector, which includes coal trading, is projected to rise 261% to 56 billion KRW during the same period. This is due to the completion of price adjustments for Indonesian coal, the strong Newcastle coal prices, and increased production at the Indonesian GAM coal mine. Additionally, the rising exchange rate is also positive for earnings. However, the logistics sector is expected to decline by 21% year-on-year due to falling freight rates, although the decline is partially offset by fixed-price contract volumes with affiliates. In Q4, the weakness in logistics freight rates is expected to be offset by strong coal prices driven by heating demand.

Based on this, operating profit for this year is expected to increase 42% year-on-year to 933.8 billion KRW.

Dongyang Kim, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, analyzed, "LX International, a major subsidiary of LX, is pursuing synergy within the newly established holding company based on strong performance momentum and is strengthening eco-friendly and wellness new businesses. Enhancing shareholder value is also an expected aspect."

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