[Click eStock] "KB Financial Posts Record Q3 Earnings... Continues Strong in Q4"

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jihwan] NH Investment & Securities stated on the 22nd that KB Financial Group recorded its highest-ever net profit in the third quarter of this year and expects the strong performance trend to continue in the fourth quarter. The investment opinion 'Buy' and the target price of 74,000 KRW were maintained.

Jung Junseop, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, said, "KB Financial Group recorded its highest-ever controlling net profit in the third quarter," adding, "Although there was no surprise, the solid performance across all sectors was impeccable, and net interest margin (NIM) improvement and steady results are expected beyond the fourth quarter." KB Financial Group's third-quarter controlling net profit was 1.2979 trillion KRW, slightly exceeding the market expectation of 1.208 trillion KRW.

Researcher Jung said, "Considering the market consensus on the base interest rate hike, the asset repricing effect is expected to sustain NIM improvement throughout next year," emphasizing, "Since they have proactively and conservatively provisioned loan loss reserves so far, unless there is a sudden change in the economic situation, the credit cost burden is not expected to be significant until next year."

Based on the solid performance, dividends at the level expected by the market this year are fully feasible, and additional shareholder returns can be anticipated in the future. Furthermore, attention should be paid to whether the newly launched financial platform app can become the second Toss. Researcher Jung emphasized, "KB Financial Group plans to launch a new financial platform that includes securities stock trading and insurance coverage analysis within the existing banking app, integrating various financial services such as remittance, securities, and banking into a single app, similar to Toss's super app strategy that concentrates traffic. While it is difficult to predict success, the direction is very positive."