'The Youngest Son of a Chaebol Family' Hits Big... Unstoppable Selling Brings 'Big Smiles'

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] As the JTBC drama "The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate," starring actor Song Joong-ki, continues to soar in viewership ratings, related stocks have surged simultaneously, leading to relentless share sales taking advantage of this momentum. The largest shareholder has strengthened liquidity through share sales, while investors have pocketed hundreds of won in profits.

According to the electronic disclosure system on the 7th, Wysiwyg Studios announced that it sold 2 million shares (4.76%) of NP on the 5th through off-hours trading. The shares were sold at 6,249 won per share, applying an 8.5% discount rate (excluding transaction fees). The transaction amounted to approximately 12.5 billion won.

Wysiwyg Studios is the largest shareholder of drama production company RaemongRaein. NP is also a subsidiary of Wysiwyg Studios. NP is engaged in advertising content planning and production. As RaemongRaein's stock price fluctuated, NP's stock price also rose alongside the theme, showing an upward trend, which is interpreted as the basis for the share sales.

RaemongRaein's stock price soared for six consecutive trading days from November 18, when the drama began airing, until the 25th. On the 24th, it closed at the maximum price limit (29.97%). During the fourth week of November (21st?25th), RaemongRaein's stock price rose 64.81% compared to the previous week (23,300 won). On the 25th, it recorded a closing price of 38,400 won, the highest since its listing. NP's stock price also surged for eight consecutive trading days from November 23 to December 2. On the 2nd, it peaked at 7,710 won during the session and closed at 7,270 won.

The largest shareholder Wysiwyg Studios' stake in NP decreased from 61.99% to 57.23%. This level still allows for effective control. Wysiwyg Studios explained, "We secured liquidity through management efficiency and partial share sales."

Earlier, as RaemongRaein's stock price surged, investors also realized profits. SBI Investment, the third-largest shareholder of RaemongRaein, sold all 526,925 shares (10.56%). On the 22nd of last month, it sold 130,000 shares at 23,222 won, and on the 23rd, 396,925 shares at 26,675 won, earning approximately 13.6 billion won in profits. This is triple the original investment amount.

Venture capital Maple Investment Partners also sold all their RaemongRaein shares on the 24th of last month. Out of the 500,000 shares purchased for 2 billion won in July 2019, they sold the remaining 400,000 shares, earning about 11.5 billion won in profits. This profit is about six times the original investment.

Meanwhile, the success of "The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate" has also brought big smiles to the original web novel of the same name, which concluded four years ago. According to Naver Series, compared to mid-September before the drama aired, the web novel's sales increased by a staggering 230 times over ten days at the end of last month. The original web novel ranked first in popularity in the Naver Series novel category. It has been translated into Thai, Indonesian, and other languages, ranking among the top on global platforms as well.