[Click e-Stock] "NC Absorbing MMORPG Demand Across All Generations... Target Price Raised"

Target Price Raised from 310,000 Won to 360,000 Won

On April 16, Shinyoung Securities stated that demand for PC MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing games) is being absorbed by NC, and raised its target price for NC from 310,000 won to 360,000 won, while maintaining its 'Buy' investment rating.

Kim Jihyun, an analyst at Shinyoung Securities, said, "'Lineage Classic' surpassed 50 billion won in cumulative sales within three weeks of its launch on February 7." Kim added, "Although cannibalization with the existing 'Lineage' PC game is inevitable, even taking this into account, the total sales of both games are expected to reach 62.2 billion won, up 148% from the previous quarter."

Kim further explained, "Sales for Aion 2 are also expected to be stable, with the Season 3 update scheduled for April and a global release planned for the third quarter." Kim noted that in a market with no new PC MMORPG releases, players in their 20s and 30s are gravitating toward 'Aion 2', while those in their 40s and 50s or older are gathering around 'Lineage Classic'.

Shinyoung Securities projected that NC's first-quarter sales would reach 537.4 billion won, up 49% year-on-year, with operating profit of 83.6 billion won and an operating margin increase of 15 percentage points.

With the consolidation of Lihoho and SpringComz, first-quarter casual game sales are expected to be 30 billion won. In the second quarter, with the addition of JustPlay from May, sales are forecast to reach approximately 92.8 billion won.

Kim stated, "This year, NC plans to solidify its existing legacy IP and focus on securing cash cows through mergers and acquisitions of casual game companies." Kim also predicted, "In the first half, a 20 billion won payout for employee stock bonuses and launch bonuses for Lineage Classic will be reflected in costs."

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