[Click eStock] "Naver AI Factory Construction Is a Necessary Investment... Target Price 330,000 Won"

Korea Investment & Securities has maintained its "Buy" rating and target price of 330,000 won for Naver, which recently announced plans to build an ultra-large artificial intelligence (AI) factory in partnership with NVIDIA, describing the move as a "necessary investment."

According to Korea Investment & Securities on June 9, Naver unveiled its blueprint for a new AI infrastructure business during a conference call held the previous day. Through cooperation with NVIDIA, the company plans to build an AI factory with a capacity of 200MW by 2028 and ultimately aims to secure gigawatt-level infrastructure within the next five to six years.

Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, poses with Lee Hae-jin, Chairman of Naver, during his visit to the Naver 1784 building in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on June 8, 2026. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Jung Hoyoon, a researcher at Korea Investment & Securities, stated, "Until now, Naver has pursued an asset-light strategy, minimizing direct investments and focusing on B2C businesses. However, at this major inflection point for the industry, the company is planning to shift its strategy toward aggressive capital investment to drive growth in revenue and profits. This is a key point to note."

Jung also projected, "In the mid- to long-term, Naver is expected to establish a business model similar to new cloud companies such as CoreWeave and Navius Group. It appears that most of the customers for the 200MW facility, set to be built by 2028, have already been secured." He further commented, "With the rise of physical AI and sovereign AI, GPU demand is becoming increasingly diversified. As changes in the market environment accelerate, the pool of potential customers for Naver's AI infrastructure is likely to grow."

The key area to monitor going forward is capital procurement. Jung estimated, "Building a gigawatt-scale data center will require 50 billion to 60 billion dollars. For the 200MW infrastructure to be constructed by 2028, Naver and its partner will each invest around 1 billion dollars, and additional capital will be raised through financial investors and bond issuance."

He emphasized, "Existing businesses have become low-growth sectors dependent on the domestic economy, and this high dependency has consistently led to a decline in Naver's valuation. However, the necessary investment has been made at the right time, and long-term performance is expected." He added, "Although Naver has been overlooked by investors for a long time, I recommend paying attention," reiterating the target price of 330,000 won.

On the previous day, Naver's share price closed at 279,000 won, up 9.20% from the previous session, following reports of NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang's visit and news of the AI infrastructure partnership.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.