Every Purchase a Jackpot... Foreign Investors Strike Gold in KOSDAQ

Top Net Buying Stocks by Foreign Investors in the Past Three Months Show Profitable Returns on Average Purchase Price
ABL Bio Delivers Over 50% Return... 147.8 Billion Won Net Bought in Three Months
BHI, Robotis, and Peptron Also Post Strong Estimated Returns

The stock prices of listed companies selected by foreign investors in the KOSDAQ market have continued to show solid performance.

According to the financial investment industry on May 28, foreign investors recorded a cumulative net selling of 1.9344 trillion won in the KOSDAQ market over the past three months. In May alone, they maintained a net selling position of 219 billion won, consistently reducing their shareholdings.

Despite maintaining a net selling stance across the KOSDAQ market as a whole, the stock prices of companies that foreign investors have chosen to hold in their portfolios have generally performed better than the overall index.

From February 27 through the previous day, foreign investors purchased 147.8 billion won worth of ABL Bio shares in the KOSDAQ market. With an average purchase price of 54,989 won, their estimated return, based on the previous day's closing price of 82,600 won, stood at 50.2%. In contrast to foreign investors, individual and institutional investors recorded net selling of 93.7 billion won and 54.7 billion won, respectively, in ABL Bio shares over the past three months.

Lee Jisoo, a researcher at Daol Investment & Securities, explained, "ABL Bio's Grabody-B is a bispecific antibody-based platform designed to effectively cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and deliver therapeutics to the central nervous system. By utilizing the insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R), the drug can bind to receptors on the surface of cerebral blood vessels and enter the brain via a natural transport pathway."

Lee added, "Last month, ABL Bio signed a technology transfer agreement with the global pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for the Grabody-B platform, once again demonstrating the platform's scalability. The company plans to announce key pipeline data in the second half of this year."

In addition to ABL Bio, the top stocks by net buying among foreign investors over the past three months include BHI (107.3 billion won net buying), Robotis (52.4 billion won), SM (47.0 billion won), and Peptron (45.8 billion won). Among the top 10 stocks by net buying, Peptron has the highest return at 65.2% compared to the average purchase price. The estimated returns for BHI and Robotis are 43.2% and 36.7%, respectively. During this period, the KOSDAQ index declined by 5.7%. Given the overall sluggish market, it can be said that foreign investors have made effective investment selections.

For individual investors, the top net buying stocks include Alteogen, Ecopro BM, Rainbow Robotics, and HLB. Unlike foreign investors, most of the stocks that individuals net bought have declined in price. Ecopro BM’s stock price is 24.9% lower than the average purchase price for individuals. Institutional investors have made profits on 7 out of their top 10 net buying stocks. However, they recorded an estimated loss of -28.4% on Ecopro, in which they invested 75.5 billion won. Alteogen, the stock most heavily purchased by institutions, has also seen its price weaken recently.

An official from the financial investment industry explained, "The recent improvement in investor sentiment toward the bio sector has also contributed to the better returns for foreign investors. It is worth paying attention to listed companies where the foreign ownership ratio is increasing."