APR jumped 12% in early trading on the 5th. The move is seen as driven by strong fourth-quarter results last year and a round of target price hikes from the securities industry on expectations that earnings growth will continue.
That day, the securities industry raised APR's target price. ▲ NH Investment & Securities 350,000 won ▲ Kyobo Securities 370,000 won ▲ LS Securities 350,000 won ▲ Shinhan Investment & Securities 350,000 won ▲ Samsung Securities 370,000 won.
As of 9:37 a.m. that day, APR was trading at 296,000 won on the Korea Composite Stock Price Index, up 32,000 won (12.12%) from the previous session.
The previous day, APR said that on a consolidation basis, fourth-quarter sales last year were 547.6 billion won and operating profit was 130.1 billion won, up 124% and 228%, respectively, from a year earlier. Operating profit beat market expectations by about 15%.
Analysts in the securities industry said high growth will continue. Jeong Ji-yoon of NH Investment & Securities said, "Eighty percent of last year's sales came from overseas," and noted, "With placement on Amazon in Europe ramping up in March and an expansion of U.S. offline channel placements slated for the second half, quarterly U.S. sales of 200 billion won and sales of at least 100 billion won in other regions are well within reach."