[Click eStock] "Shin Ramyun That Won the World"... Investment Outlook

Hana Securities has maintained its target price for Nongshim at 540,000 won and its "buy" investment rating.

On September 9, Shim Eun-ju, a researcher at Hana Securities, stated, "Although the won-dollar exchange rate has recently declined, since the company maintains a neutral position regarding the exchange rate, short-term earnings visibility remains very high." She added, "Considering the overseas sales expansion driven by the new plant's operation, value buying at lower prices is appropriate."

Expectations for Nongshim's overseas sales are growing. Researcher Shim said, "With the new plant for export expected to begin trial operations at the end of this month, and considering the growing interest in ramen in Europe, expectations for overseas sales from the second half of this year into next year will be reflected." She continued, "Given this trend, we estimate that annual exports to Europe will reach around 180 billion won this year, surpassing 200 billion won next year." She also pointed out, "Since Europe has long been an underdeveloped market for ramen demand, the region has high mid- to long-term growth potential."

Sales recovery in the Americas is also underway. Shim noted, "In the second quarter of this year, Nongshim's U.S. sales excluding Canada increased by 17.9% year-on-year to 146 billion won, driven by the expansion of the Shin Ramyun brand category and the launch into new ethnic channels." She added, "The dollar-based growth rate was 11% in the second quarter, and we expect this pace to continue with about 10% growth in the third quarter."

This year, consolidated sales in the third quarter are expected to reach 935.4 billion won, up 7.4% from a year earlier, while operating profit is forecast to reach 60.7 billion won, up 11.6%. Researcher Shim commented, "Domestically, the effect of price increases for cup noodles and snacks will partially offset higher costs for raw materials and packaging, while in China, the company will continue to actively expand its entry into the snack channel."

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