[Click eStock] "Shift Up, the 2nd Anniversary Update Becomes a Crucial Moment"

Hana Securities analyzed on the 25th that Shift Up is expected to improve its performance through the 2nd anniversary update, and from next year, it is projected to record its highest performance through the expansion of existing games. The investment opinion 'Buy' and the target price of 95,000 KRW were maintained.

Hana Securities forecasted that Shift Up's operating revenue and operating profit for the third quarter will be 51.8 billion KRW and 38.1 billion KRW, respectively, representing increases of 34.7% and 105.0% compared to the same period last year. Junho Lee, a researcher at Hana Securities, said, "It is expected to slightly miss the consensus due to the poor performance of the Evangelion collaboration in Victory Goddess: Nike," adding, "Although the Evangelion collaboration brought in new users, it is understood that the sales of external skins were sluggish, and improvements are expected in future updates."

This year’s expected operating revenue and operating profit are projected to be 211.7 billion KRW and 147.3 billion KRW, respectively, marking increases of 25.5% and 29.4% compared to the previous year. He explained, "Due to the poor performance of the Evangelion collaboration in the third quarter, the growth of Victory Goddess: Nike is expected to slow down, which could lead to concerns about Nike’s performance after its entry into China and the overall results in 2025 and 2026. Although the PC expansion of Stella Blade is scheduled for 2025, the earnings estimates reflect a higher weighting on the growth and China entry expectations of Victory Goddess: Nike."

He said, "Victory Goddess: Nike has a 2nd anniversary broadcast scheduled for October 26 and a 2nd anniversary update on October 31," adding, "The 2nd anniversary update has been emphasized at events such as Tokyo Game Show 2024, and users are already expecting an unprecedented volume of content." He further added, "We believe this update can renew the first anniversary sales record."

The researcher forecasted, "Shift Up, based on high productivity, is a leading company in domestic subculture games and is expected to record its highest performance through the expansion of existing games in 2025," adding, "Victory Goddess: Nike’s launch in China and Stella Blade’s PC expansion are expected in the first half of next year."

He continued, "With the timing of Stella Blade’s PC expansion, the possibility of a Victory Goddess: Nike X Stella Blade collaboration also looks high, so synergy between owned IPs is expected," emphasizing, "The sequel project Witches is under development targeting 2027, and information is expected to be disclosed starting in 2025."