SK Securities analyzed on the 13th that ISU PETASYS is expected to see a performance growth as the price increase cycle intensifies this year. They raised the target stock price from 50,000 won to 55,500 won while maintaining the investment opinion of 'buy.' The closing price of ISU PETASYS on the previous trading day was 40,700 won.
In the fourth quarter of last year, ISU PETASYS recorded sales and operating profit of 226.1 billion won and 27.8 billion won, respectively, which represents an increase of 30% and 152% compared to the previous year. This figure reflects a one-time expense of 2.5 billion won at year-end.
Park Hyung-woo, a researcher at SK Securities, noted, "Sales increased by 13.3 billion won compared to the previous quarter due to the operation effect of the fourth factory," adding, "The initial yields of new products such as substrates for 800G communication equipment, which apply a multi-layer process, are low, so improvements in profitability are limited." Currently, the yield of the new products appears to be close to normal levels.
SK Securities highlighted that ISU PETASYS is a beneficiary of application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC). Research Institute Park said, "The AI accelerator equipment of the largest platform customer in North America is equipped with ASIC chips, and our company serves as the mainboard first vendor." It is reported that they are also in discussions with additional server corporations about the development and supply of mainboards that align with ASIC chips.
Furthermore, as sales to global AI semiconductor customers increase and mass production of new products began in the fourth quarter of last year, significant supply will commence from the first quarter of this year. Research Institute Park pointed out, "The uncertainty of the U.S. government's tariff policy presents an opportunity for ISU PETASYS to increase market share, as many of its main competitors are Chinese companies."
SK Securities forecasts ISU PETASYS's operating profit to be 164.2 billion won this year and believes there is a significant possibility of further upward adjustment following yield improvements. Research Institute Park stated, "The biggest change this year is the improvement in the product mix and the rise in average selling price (ASP) through the upgrade of multi-layer boards (MLB)." He added, "In the medium to long term, there is also a possibility of price increases due to supply shortages."