[Click eStock] "Seoul Auction, Domestic Auction Market Turnaround Begins"

KTB Investment & Securities Presents 'Buy' Investment Opinion and Target Price of 6,500 Won... Closing Price on 20th at 5,340 Won

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Bo-ryeong] Seoul Auction is being analyzed as having passed the bottom.

According to KTB Investment & Securities on the 23rd, Seoul Auction recorded sales of 6.7 billion KRW and operating profit of 1.1 billion KRW in the third quarter. Although sales decreased by 34% compared to the previous year, operating profit turned positive, achieving a turnaround.

Jae-yoon Kim, a researcher at KTB Investment & Securities, explained, "The decrease in consolidated sales in the third quarter was due to the exclusion of Seoul Auction Blue and Print Bakery shares from consolidation as their shareholding decreased," adding, "On the contrary, standalone sales recorded 5.7 billion KRW, showing a 76.9% growth compared to the previous year."

Kim believes that the domestic auction market appears to have started a turnaround. He said, "After a sluggish first half due to COVID-19, positive results were shown in all sectors including products, auctions, and brokerage in the second half," and added, "Especially, by replacing the Hong Kong auction, which could not be held due to COVID-19, with the Seoul Global Auction in July, the possibility of sales recovery in the future has increased."

Recently, the increase in art investment among younger generations was also cited as a positive signal for a turnaround next year. This is because art investment is emerging as one of the alternative investments in a situation where real estate investment is difficult.

KTB Investment & Securities gave Seoul Auction a 'Buy' investment opinion with a target price of 6,500 KRW, raising the target price from the previous 5,000 KRW. The closing price on the 20th was 5,340 KRW. Researcher Kim analyzed, "With the domestic auction market having succeeded in a turnaround, if the global auction market turnaround proceeds next year with the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, Seoul Auction's performance is expected to recover rapidly."