[Click eStock] Hana Financial Group Achieves 4 Trillion Won Annual Profit..."Shareholder Return Enhancement Boosts Attractiveness This Year"

Target Price Maintained at 128,000 Won

Samsung Securities has maintained its target price for Hana Financial Group at 128,000 won and reiterated its "Buy" investment rating. This suggests an upside potential of 23.6% compared to the current share price of 103,600 won.

Hana Financial Group posted a net profit of 569.4 billion won in the fourth quarter, up 10.9% year-on-year. This slightly exceeded the market consensus of 563 billion won. On an annual basis, the company surpassed 4 trillion won in net profit for the first time ever, representing a 7.5% increase from the previous year. However, in the fourth quarter, the company incurred one-off costs totaling 186.3 billion won, including 113.7 billion won in provisions related to fines, 53.6 billion won for the New Leap Fund, and 19 billion won in foreign currency translation losses.

The key competitive strengths of Hana Financial Group are the simultaneous growth of interest income and fee income, as well as its ability to manage asset quality in a stable manner. In the fourth quarter, the group’s interest income increased by 4.0% compared to the previous quarter. Despite flat growth in won-denominated loans at 0%, the group’s net interest margin (NIM) rose by 4 basis points quarter-on-quarter to 1.78%, which played a crucial role. On a full-year basis, interest income reached 9.2 trillion won, up 4.6% year-on-year.

The most significant change for Hana Financial Group is the strengthening of its shareholder return policy. The company increased its year-end dividend for fiscal 2025, meeting the requirements for high-dividend companies eligible for separate taxation on dividend income. The fourth-quarter dividend per share (DPS) was 1,366 won, a 48.5% increase from 920 won in the third quarter, and the payout ratio rose to 27.8%. As a result, the annual shareholder return rate reached 46.8%, rapidly approaching the company’s 2027 target of 50%.

The company plans to further specify its shareholder return policy at a board meeting at the end of February. In particular, it is reportedly actively considering the introduction of a variable dividend. As the likelihood of achieving its shareholder return target ahead of schedule has increased, attention is focused on whether the existing policy will be revised upward.

Jaeu Kim, a researcher at Samsung Securities, maintained Hana Financial Group as his top pick in the sector, stating, "With a forecast 2026 price-to-book ratio (PBR) of 0.66 times, the stock continues to trade at an attractive valuation, and stable earnings improvement and enhanced shareholder return policies are expected to continue."