KOSDAQ Operating Profit Up 0.8%... Earnings Remain Flat
KOSDAQ Profitability Deteriorates
Operating Margin 6.7% → 5.6%
Net Profit Margin 5.0% → 3.2%
IT Hardware Performance Increases... Semiconductor Boom in H1
Construction Operating Profit Down 30.4%... Reflecting Real Estate Market Conditions
Last year, the performance of KOSDAQ-listed companies essentially remained stagnant, but profitability deteriorated. Operating profit (consolidated basis) increased by 0.8%, but the operating profit margin decreased by 0.4 percentage points. The construction and distribution sectors saw significant declines in both performance (operating profit) and profitability (operating profit margin). On the other hand, the IT hardware sector, including semiconductors, showed increased performance.
According to the Korea Exchange and the KOSDAQ Association on the 4th, the consolidated operating profit of 1,100 December fiscal year-end corporations listed on KOSDAQ last year was 15.4 trillion KRW, up 0.8% from the previous year. Sales amounted to 274.4 trillion KRW, an increase of 19.9%, while net profit decreased by 23.5% to 8.7 trillion KRW.
Profitability indicators, operating profit margin and net profit margin relative to sales, were 5.6% and 3.2%, respectively, showing a slight decrease compared to the previous year. The debt ratio was 108.4%, slightly up by 1.1 percentage points from 107.3% the previous year.
By industry, sales and operating profit in the IT hardware sector (semiconductors, IT components, etc.) increased by 18.5% and 23.0%, respectively. This is attributed to the semiconductor manufacturing boom that continued until the first half of 2022. The operating profit margin also slightly rose from 6.4% in 2021 to 6.7% in 2022.
Specifically, the company with the largest increase in operating profit in the KOSDAQ IT sector last year was L&F, which increased by 223.6 billion KRW compared to the previous year. This was followed by Simtek (160.1 billion KRW), Dongjin Semichem (88.4 billion KRW), Humax (52.7 billion KRW), and HFR (46.4 billion KRW).
In manufacturing, Ecopro BM ranked first with an increase of 135.4 billion KRW. Next were Toptec (100.3 billion KRW), Osstem Implant (73.4 billion KRW), Sungwoo Hitech (54.8 billion KRW), and HLB (52.5 billion KRW).
However, most other sectors such as distribution and construction saw declines in operating profit due to worsening profit margins. Operating profit in the construction sector was 545 billion KRW, down 30.4% from the previous year. The operating profit margin also dropped from 11.8% in 2021 to 6.7% in 2022.
Operating profit in the distribution sector was 1.7914 trillion KRW, a decrease of 21.4% compared to the previous year. The operating profit margin also fell from 8.6% in 2021 to 5.5% in 2022.
Meanwhile, last year, the individual basis operating profit for KOSDAQ was 12.4 trillion KRW, up 8.1% from 2021. Sales increased by 14.9% to 189.1 trillion KRW, while net profit decreased by 14.5% to 7.3 trillion KRW.
Profitability indicators, operating profit margin and net profit margin relative to sales, were 6.6% and 3.9%, respectively. These figures represent decreases of 0.4 percentage points and 1.3 percentage points compared to the previous year. The debt ratio also slightly worsened, rising by 0.6 percentage points to 60.5% at the end of last year from 59.5% the previous year, indicating a slight deterioration in financial soundness.
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