NH Investment & Securities analyzed on the 16th that SK Square's major subsidiary, SK hynix, is trapped in a range-bound situation with its stock price, which is disappointing for SK Square's stock price. However, it expects additional share buybacks and cancellations in the second half of the year. It maintained a target price of 120,000 won and an investment opinion of 'buy.' The closing price of SK Square on the previous trading day was 100,800 won.
NH Investment & Securities pointed out that SK hynix, which accounts for the largest share of SK Square's net worth (NAV), is facing issues with tariffs and concerns about reduced demand in the second half of the year, which has weakened investor sentiment, causing its stock price to remain range-bound.
Researcher Ahn Jae-min from NH Investment & Securities explained, "There are concerns about the semiconductor market; however, stable performance is expected in the second half with high-value products such as HBM3E (5th generation HBM) 12-layer shipments." He noted that the poor performance of other subsidiaries, including Tmap Mobility, 11Street, ONE store, and FSK L&S, is disappointing and emphasized the need for delayed mergers and acquisitions (M&A) related to the semiconductor business.
In the second half of this year, share buybacks and cancellations by SK Square are anticipated. Researcher Ahn stated, "Along with the enhancement of corporate value announced last November, we conducted a share buyback and cancellation of 200 billion won in the same year," and added, "This year, as dividends from subsidiary SK hynix increase, the scale of share buybacks and cancellations could grow."
Last year, SK Square proposed to reduce the NAV discount rate to below 50% by 2027, achieve return on equity (ROE) exceeding cost of equity (COE) from 2025 to 2027, and target a price-to-book ratio (PBR) of over 1 by 2027.