[Click eStock] "KG Mobilians, Earnings Growth Expected Due to Increased Trading Volume"

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] Hana Financial Investment maintained a buy rating and a target price of 14,600 KRW for KG Mobilians on the 22nd, expecting a significant increase in transaction volume this year.

KG Mobilians' expected performance for the second quarter is projected to be 81.7 billion KRW in sales and 13.3 billion KRW in operating profit, representing growth of 14.2% and 14.7% respectively compared to the same period last year. In the mobile micropayment sector, the transaction volume with NAVER, the top single merchant, is expected to increase by 60% to 135 billion KRW compared to a year ago. However, due to some merchant closures, the total micropayment transaction volume is forecasted to slightly rise by 1.9% to 670 billion KRW.

The credit card sector is expected to drive transaction growth with a significant increase in merchants. The number of merchants is estimated to have grown from 8,700 at the end of the second quarter last year to 12,700 currently. Accordingly, credit card transaction volume is expected to increase by 30% compared to a year ago, reaching 1.5 trillion KRW.

The total expected sales for this year are projected at 334.5 billion KRW, and operating profit at 55.1 billion KRW, representing increases of 24% and 20% respectively compared to the same period last year. Jaeho Choi, a researcher at Hana Financial Investment, stated, “The high growth in the credit card sector and the continuous expansion of the NAVER-related share will drive growth in mobile micropayment transaction volume.” He added, “In the second half of the year, an increase in transaction volume is expected due to high-priced travel and airline bookings enabled by the raised mobile micropayment limit.” Furthermore, Choi said, “KG Mobilians plans to officially launch the insurance premium mobile micropayment service next month, the first of its kind among domestic mobile micropayment companies, which is expected to sustain continuous growth.”