Korea Investment & Securities said on the 23rd that LIG Nex1 is showing fast and steady growth. With revenue recognition for the export business, which accounts for more than half of this year's sales, set to kick into gear, and with full-fledged revenue growth starting next year, the strong performance is expected to continue beyond 2028. The firm raised its target price to 580,000 won from 420,000 won and maintained its buy rating.
LIG Nex1's third-quarter sales on a consolidation basis are estimated at 1.051 trillion won, with operating profit at 77.9 billion won. Those are increases of 42% and 49.9%, respectively, from a year earlier. The figures reflect Ghost Robotics' operating loss and a one-off investment expense of 15 billion won.
The strong performance stems from improving results in the defense business. As of the second quarter, the order backlog stands at 23.5 trillion won. In addition to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Cheongung project, for which mass-production revenue recognition has increased this year, revenue in the Middle East is expected to rise sequentially starting next year. Accordingly, operating profit in 2026 and 2027 is forecast at 466.7 billion won and 595.9 billion won, respectively.
Jang Nam-hyeon, an analyst at Korea Investment & Securities, said, "Since July, the share price has fallen 29.7%, lowering the PER to 23.8 times, and the company is therefore valued lower than European defense firms," adding, "However, with EPS growing at an average annual rate of 33.2% in 2024–2027, outpacing European defense firms, we see no reason for a valuation discount."