[Featured Stocks] Seven Major Financial Holding Companies Rise Together... Stirring Ahead of Earnings Announcements

7 Major Financial Holding Companies All Rise Over 3% Early on the 22nd
Risen on Value-Up Benefit Expectations, Recently Adjusted
Earnings Season Begins with JB Financial on the 22nd

Bank stocks, which had been subdued for a while, are showing strength. This is interpreted as rising expectations ahead of earnings announcements.

As of 9:13 a.m. on the 22nd, Hana Financial Group is trading at 55,700 KRW, up 6.3% (3,300 KRW) from the previous close. All bank stocks commonly referred to as the '7 major financial holding companies' are on the rise. Shinhan Financial Group (5.51%), KB Financial Group (5.18%), Woori Financial Group (4.14%), JB Financial Group (3.92%), BNK Financial Group (3.36%), and DGB Financial Group (3.00%) are all up more than 3% in early trading.

Bank stocks were strong around the announcement of the 'Corporate Value-Up Program' in February. This was because the low price-to-book ratio (PBR) highlighted the expectation that they would benefit from the value-up program. However, recently, there has been a strong correction. On the 22nd, Jeongwook Choi, a researcher at Hana Securities, said, "Bank stocks surged 32% from the beginning of the year to mid-to-late March, but then gave back two-thirds of the gains over about a month, resulting in a year-to-date increase of only 11.4%." He added, "Investors should increase their weighting in bank stocks again around the earnings announcements." He also noted that due to the recent correction, the PBR of bank stocks has dropped to around 0.35 times.

Starting with JB Financial Group on the 22nd, bank stocks enter the first-quarter earnings announcement season. KB Financial Group is scheduled for the 25th, Shinhan Financial Group, Hana Financial Group, and Woori Financial Group on the 26th, BNK Financial Group on the 30th, and DGB Financial Group on May 2nd. Researcher Choi said, "Although there are Middle East risks, if escalation is restrained, exchange rate volatility will not be significant." He added, "Considering the precedent of bank stocks outperforming the KOSPI during the interest rate hike period in the third quarter of last year, the more the expectations for interest rate cuts turn into disappointment, the higher the possibility that bank stocks will outperform."