[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] BMT, a manufacturer of fittings and valves, is showing strong performance. The news of a sharp increase in operating profit in the second quarter of this year seems to be influencing the stock price.
As of 2:03 PM on the 9th, BMT is trading at 14,850 KRW, up 3.48% from the previous day.
BMT recorded consolidated sales of 38.4 billion KRW and operating profit of 8.7 billion KRW in the second quarter of this year. These figures represent increases of 33.2% and 498.2%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. This marks the highest quarterly performance in the company's history. The operating profit margin improved to 22.7%, indicating better profitability.
On a separate basis, sales and operating profit also rose by 32.3% and 498.7% year-on-year to 38.1 billion KRW and 9.1 billion KRW, respectively. Sales of fittings and valves increased across demand sectors including semiconductors, LNG ships, and oil & gas plants. Despite rising raw material prices, the company enhanced profitability and demonstrated competitiveness through price increases, production efficiency improvements, and expansion of high value-added product lines.
A company representative explained, "Strong performance of key products for semiconductors and shipbuilding drove the growth in results," adding, "Since obtaining Aramco certification in early March, sales to the oil & gas plant sector have increased, contributing to the record quarterly performance."
Earlier, in early March, BMT received certification for product sales from Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil company. The certified products include six items in total: ▲tube fittings ▲instrumentation valves including ball valves ▲manifold valves. This is the largest number of approved items among domestic fitting and valve companies.
The positive trend in performance is expected to continue in the second half of this year. Effects such as increased order volumes due to favorable conditions in end-user industries, reduced transportation costs from easing overseas logistics issues, and cost reductions through production efficiency are ongoing.
BMT is leading the localization of core components in the hydrogen industry by developing fittings and valves for hydrogen infrastructure construction. Earlier this year, it established a subsidiary, Highrion, which produces electrode coating equipment necessary for secondary battery production. Highrion is focusing on developing semi-dry and dry coating technologies and plans to introduce new coating equipment and process technologies. These technologies are characterized by superior performance compared to existing ones in all aspects including electrode characteristics, safety, and cost-effectiveness.
A company representative stated, "Highrion plans to enter the production equipment market after patenting its technology," and added, "Highrion's technology will make a key contribution with excellent performance not only in existing secondary batteries but also in dry coating and solid-state battery production fields."
Hwang Se-hwan, a researcher at FS Research, analyzed, "Shipbuilding companies have already secured orders for the next several years, so BMT's supply volume will also be substantial," and "orders in the semiconductor sector are expected to continue through the second half of the year."
He continued, "A 200 billion KRW scale expansion is underway, aiming for completion next year," and "once the expansion is completed, sales exceeding the mid-300 billion KRW range will be possible."
He added, "The company, which used to generate around 6 billion KRW in annual operating profit until last year, is transforming into a company with operating profit in the high 20 billion KRW range this year," and "it is a company worth attention despite the recent stock price increase."
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