[Market Movers] JoyCity Surges 19% on Biohazard Success and New Release Expectations

The stock price of JoyCity, a game company, is showing strong performance, fueled by the popularity of its new title Biohazard and heightened expectations for additional new releases this year.

As of 9:10 a.m. on March 10, JoyCity was trading at 2,735 won, up 440 won (19.17%) from the previous trading day.

On this day, DS Investment & Securities initiated coverage on JoyCity with a "Buy" investment rating and a target price of 3,200 won.

Seungho Choi, a researcher at DS Investment & Securities, first pointed out that JoyCity is focusing its capabilities on the mobile 4X (explore, expand, exploit, exterminate) strategy genre. The 4X genre has overtaken RPGs (role-playing games) to become the largest segment in the global mobile gaming market in 2024, and JoyCity is essentially the only listed Korean company whose revenue structure is directly linked to this market growth, according to the analysis.

In particular, he expressed high expectations that the new title "Biohazard: Survival Unit," launched in November last year, will serve as a key driver for JoyCity's top-line growth over the next two to three years. This game achieved the highest-ever record in JoyCity's initial performance and has been recognized for demonstrating both its ability to secure major IPs and its expertise in 4X development.

This year's new releases are also expected to support improved earnings. "Freestyle Football 2," which is scheduled for open beta testing in June and planned for release in the fourth quarter, is expected to act as a profit driver by being sold as a paid package, thereby enhancing profitability. The MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) "Imjin War: Joseon's Counterattack," which is targeting release in the first half of the year, is also projected to attract significant initial user interest.

JoyCity's performance this year is projected to reach sales of 184.5 billion won and operating profit of 22.2 billion won. This represents a 32% increase in sales and a 338% surge in operating profit compared to the previous year. Researcher Choi stated, "We expect simultaneous top-line growth driven by Biohazard and profit improvement based on Freestyle Football 2," adding, "This year will mark a structurally transformative period of growth for JoyCity."

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