[Click eStock] "POSCO Holdings, Investment Sentiment Expected to Improve from Q1 Next Year... Target Price Down"

Hyundai Motor Securities on the 25th lowered the target price for POSCO Holdings from 745,000 KRW to 664,000 KRW, reflecting adjustments in lithium prices. The investment rating was maintained at 'Buy.'

Park Hyun-wook, a researcher at Hyundai Motor Securities, explained, "The reason for maintaining the 'Buy' rating is that both Chinese steel prices and global lithium prices are expected to be supported at the current levels," adding, "Chinese steel demand is expected to gradually recover from the second quarter of next year, leading to improved investor sentiment from the first quarter."

POSCO Holdings recorded sales of 18.9619 trillion KRW and an operating profit of 1.196 trillion KRW in the third quarter of this year. Operating profit increased by 30% compared to the same period last year but decreased by 10% compared to the previous quarter. The decline in operating profit is expected to continue into the fourth quarter. Researcher Park said, "POSCO Holdings' fourth-quarter operating profit is expected to be 1.128 trillion KRW, a 6% decrease from the previous quarter," explaining, "This is because, as in the third quarter, POSCO's selling prices and raw material input costs both declined, slightly narrowing the spread, and some subsidiaries are experiencing seasonal off-peak effects, leading to profit slowdown."

The stock price is expected to move depending on the recovery of the steel market conditions. Researcher Park stated, "The steel industry in the second half of the year is weaker compared to the first half, but this has been largely reflected in the recent stock price adjustment," and added, "Lithium prices are supported at around 20,000 USD per ton, and as steel market conditions improve in the future, the stock price is expected to trend upward."

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