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| PI첨단소재 진천공장. (사진=PI첨단소재 홈페이지) |
[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Paul Lee] NH Investment & Securities lowered its earnings forecast for PI advanced materials in consideration of slowing demand and intensifying competition. The target stock price dropped from 38,000 won to 28,000 won, and the investment opinion 'buy' was maintained.
In the fourth quarter of last year, PI advanced materials' operating profit was 1.1 billion won, down 90.8% from a year earlier. This is below our estimates and market consensus, which is attributed to low operating rates and one-off costs due to slowing demand.
NH Investment & Securities explained, "The slowdown in earnings was steeper than expected due to the recent slowdown in sales of North American smartphone makers and inventory adjustments."
However, it is predicted that it will be possible to recover its performance in the second half of this year through the possibility of improving demand in front-line industries and diversifying sales to electric vehicles.
"The full-fledged earnings recovery of PI high-tech materials is expected in the second half of the year when the volume of North American customers will recover and demand for Chinese smartphones will improve," NH Investment & Securities said. "The sales sources will be diversified into insulation tapes for electric vehicle batteries and aerospace, and the dependence on smartphones can be decreased."
Alphabiz Reporter Paul Lee(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
