[Alpha Biz= Ellie Kim] SK Securities maintained a “Buy” rating and a target price of KRW 593,000 for Kiwoom Securities on May 4, noting that while the company delivered strong first-quarter results, continued declines in market share remain a concern.

Analyst Jang Young-im said Kiwoom’s controlling shareholder net profit reached KRW 476.4 billion in the first quarter, up 102.4% year-on-year and exceeding consensus estimates by 14%.

Earnings growth was driven by gains in proprietary trading and brokerage revenue. Investment income surged 72.5% quarter-on-quarter amid a strong equity market, while brokerage commissions rose 31.7%, supporting overall performance.

However, market share erosion continues to weigh on sentiment. Kiwoom’s brokerage market share fell to 25.7% in the first quarter, down 0.9 percentage points from the previous quarter. The decline was attributed to a shift toward large-cap stocks, increased ETF trading, and intensified branch-based sales by larger securities firms.

The trend was also evident in margin lending, where average balances rose to KRW 5 trillion but market share declined by 1.2 percentage points to 13.3%.

“Although the ongoing market share decline is a negative factor, Kiwoom still maintains high sensitivity to trading volume, supporting a positive outlook,” Jang said. “That said, the company will need to demonstrate its ability to defend market share—through initiatives such as retirement pension products—in the second half to justify and expand its valuation premium versus peers.”

 

 

 

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