[Click eStock] "NAVER, Profit Growth Expected... Target Price Up"

NH Investment & Securities analyzed on the 6th that NAVER's profit growth is expected due to changes in the commerce business. The investment opinion was maintained as 'Buy,' and the target stock price was raised to 280,000 KRW.

NH Investment & Securities forecasted that NAVER will record sales of 2.82 trillion KRW and an operating profit of 550.7 billion KRW in the fourth quarter of last year. This represents an increase of 11.1% and 35.8%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Jaemin An, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, said, "We expect solid sales growth in the fourth quarter due to the peak season effects of advertising and commerce," adding, "Although marketing expenses will increase due to the 'Gangseil' promotion in the commerce business during the fourth quarter, it can be offset by sales growth." He also added, "We expect continuous growth in AI sales related to Neuro Cloud, which has been reflected since the second quarter."

This year, changes in the commerce business are expected. He emphasized, "Compared to competitor Coupang, NAVER will secure logistics competitiveness by expanding products that can be delivered within 3 hours, same-day delivery, dawn delivery, holiday delivery, and desired-day delivery," and added, "The Plus Store, currently only available within NAVER, will be separated into a standalone app, which is expected to increase not only transaction volume but also users' dwell time, thereby boosting advertising revenue."

He added, "Despite the domestic economic situation still being unfavorable, the growth of advertising and commerce businesses, which significantly impact NAVER's performance, remains robust."

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