[Click e-Stock] "Exicon to Expand 2026 Growth Momentum with CLT and SSD Testers"

On January 8, Yuanta Securities analyzed that Exicon, a company supplying memory testers, burn-in testers, and SSD testers to domestic and international clients, is expected to enter a phase of performance recovery as it begins to recognize revenue from large-scale supply contracts.

Kwon Myungjun, a researcher at Yuanta Securities, explained, "Exicon operates a semiconductor testing equipment business that inspects the performance and reliability of semiconductors, and sells memory testers, burn-in testers, and SSD testers to both domestic and overseas customers."

Although Exicon's performance was somewhat sluggish from the first to the third quarter of last year, the outlook is that the situation will change significantly in the fourth quarter. Kwon noted, "The supply contract signed in June last year for next-generation memory testers (worth 19.654 billion won) and the contract in October for CLT and Burn-in Testers (worth 20.41 billion won) are both scheduled to run until the end of 2025," adding, "Fourth-quarter revenue is expected to be around 40 billion won."

CLT equipment is cited as Exicon's key growth driver. The final testing process consists of burn-in testing, low-frequency testing, and high-frequency testing. Previously, Japanese Advantest products were used for conventional CLT equipment that evaluates low-frequency. Kwon stated, "To address aging equipment and improve efficiency, the company completed the development of the CLT (Chambered Low Frequency Tester) in 2024, and deliveries have been underway since last year."

He continued, "Revenue related to CLT equipment is expected to continue this year," explaining, "A review of the supply contract amendment announcement on January 2 shows that the 8.805 billion won CLT Interface Board contract is set for the end of the first quarter this year." With both new fab construction and replacement demand for existing fabs occurring simultaneously, the contribution to next year's performance is expected to increase further.

Kwon added, "Given that demand from new fab construction and replacement of existing fabs remains, it is expected to make a significant contribution to the company's performance in 2026. In addition, the company is planning to expand into HBM and GDDR. If it passes the client's qualification tests, this will serve as an additional growth momentum."

From this year, the SSD tester business is likely to emerge as a new growth axis. At CES 2026, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang hinted at the commercialization potential of SSDs, increasing interest in the related market. He cited the worsening memory bottleneck in the process of supporting GPUs as the reason.

Regarding this, Kwon emphasized, "The company is a supplier of SSD testers and can provide new equipment during generational transitions." It is already known that Micron's 9650 Gen6 SSD has been released, and domestic memory semiconductor companies are also expected to launch similar products within the year.

He projected, "The company is developing Gen6 SSD testers, and related revenue is expected to be generated within the year." Furthermore, the CXL tester business, which has a high degree of technological similarity with SSD testers, is also attracting attention. Kwon analyzed, "It is known that SSD testers and CXL 3.1 testers are technologically very similar," and "Initial revenue related to CXL testers can also be expected within the year."