[THE INVESTOR] SM Entertainment’s third-quarter operating profit will fall 34 percent to 7.5 billion won (US$6.63 million) from the same period last year, and standalone sales will be down 7 percent to 54.7 billion won, according to Shinhan Investment on Oct. 21. In addition to the revenue from albums, downloads and appearances, “concerts including EXO’s seven, Yesung’s three, Taeyeon’s three in Korea as well as SHINee’s Japan concert with 430,000 attendance, will boost its bottom line. The comp

[THE INVESTOR] YG Entertainment’s operating profit in the third quarter will hike 27 percent to 7 billion won (US$6.19 million) and revenue will jump 55 percent to 74.1 billion won in the third quarter, according to Shinhan Investment on Oct. 21.“Concerts should drive top-line growth: Big Bang is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a concert in Japan with attendance of 280,000, 10 in China and one in Korea; iKon has four tours in Asia; and Sechs Kies has two. Sales contribution should increase

[THE INVESTOR] Lotte Group is in talks with Lahore PepsiCo, a bottling company of Pepsi-Cola in Pakistan, to take over a major stake, according to news reports on Oct. 20.The South Korean conglomerate acknowledged that it positively reviewing the acquisition, unlike in February when it said it is merely one of the candidates available for merger.Lotte has an agreement with Pepsi for manufacturing and distribution in South Korea since 1976 through Lotte Chilsung Beverage. It also owns 34.4 percen

[THE INVESTOR] KB Financial Group reported on Oct. 20 that it more than met the market expectations with a 564.4 billion won (US$503.75 million) net profit in the third quarter. The net profit between January and September reached 1.69 trillion won, a 25.1 percent hike on-year. Despite the lower base rate since June, it succeeded in offsetting it by lowering the interest expense by 14.1 percent. Its total assets increased by 9.2 percent from the end of 2015 to 489.8 trillion won as of the end of

[THE INVESTOR] POSCO Daewoo’s stock price will continue to recover as the oil price is stable, according to Mirae Asset Daewoo on Oct. 20. The securities firm maintained a “buy” recommendation and raised the target price to 32,000 won (US$28.56) from 30,000 won. Its revenue in the third quarter will decline 4 percent to 4.01 trillion won, and operating profit by 4.5 percent to 83.9 billion won on-year, forecast Ryu Je-hyeon, an analyst at Mirae Asset Daewoo. Although the operating profit from th

[THE INVESTOR] Fila Korea will defend its management rights in Acushnet by increasing its stake up to 50 percent before the US golf equipment manufacturer goes public this month, according to news reports on Oct. 19.With 33.1 percent stake, it currently is the largest shareholder of Acushnet, the world’s largest golf equipment and apparel company that owns Titleist and FootJoy. Acushnet will offer 19.3 million shares to the public, to raise up to US$463.2 million, and its total post-IPO market v

[THE INVESTOR] Kolmar Korea will stay on the upturn as it continues to fare well at home and overseas, according to Shinhan Investment on Oct. 20.The securities firm maintained a “buy” recommendation and target price of 130,000 won (US$116.03), forecasting that the cosmetics original development manufacturer’s third quarter turnover will reach 156.8 billion won, up 22.3 percent on-year, with a 18.8 billion won operating profit, up 19.8 percent on-year, meeting the market consensus.It will contin

[THE INVESTOR] AmorePacific Group will maintain a steady growth momentum as Innisfree continues to thrive and Etude’s both sales and profit leap, according to NH Investment and Securities on Oct. 20. It maintained a “buy” recommendation and projected a 207,000 won (US$184.76) target price, up from 190,000 won. The beauty giant’s third-quarter revenue will hike 26.4 percent to 1.70 trillion won, and its operating profit 48.8 percent to 280.2 billion won, from the same period last year, forecast H

[THE INVESTOR] Arion Technology acknowledged that its subsidiary DreamT Entertainment is in the process of being listed on the Singapore stock market by merging with a local listed company, in a statement released on Oct. 19 in response to Korea Exchange’s inquiry regarding the news reports. DreamT is South Korean idol group Girl’s Day’s agency.   Girl's DayArion is seeking to list three entertainment subsidiaries, Line and YMC as well, and is looking at the best way to create synergies with a l

[THE INVESTOR] Hanwha Group will turn to black in the third quarter and post 152.1 billion won (US$135.14 million) controlling shareholder net income, according to Hana Financial Investment on Oct. 19. The securities firm maintained a “buy” recommendation and the target price of 46,000 won.Hanwha’s operating profit in the third quarter will soar 422.8 percent to 535.2 billion won, remarkably higher than market consensus, said O Jin-won, an analyst at Hana, following “Hanwha Engineering and Const