Daily Brief South Korea: Jeju Air, Korea Stock Exchange Kospi 200 Index, SK Biopharmaceuticals Co Ltd and more

In today’s briefing:

Jeju Air: A Big Beneficiary of Travel Resurgence in Asia + A Likely Inclusion in KOSPI 200 in 2023
Official Changes in Korea FSC’s Dividend Rules: Ramifications from a Trading Perspective
SK Biopharmaceuticals (326030 KS): Global Expansion to Accelerate Growth Trajectory of Epilepsy Drug

Jeju Air: A Big Beneficiary of Travel Resurgence in Asia + A Likely Inclusion in KOSPI 200 in 2023

We believe that Jeju Air is in a sweet spot right now. Jeju Air is one of the major beneficiaries of the travel resurgence in Asia.
Jeju Air is a potential inclusion candidate in the KOSPI 200 index in 2023. There are 42 companies in KOSPI 200 which have lower market cap than Jeju Air.
Outbound travel from Korea recovered strongly with 6.6 million outbound tourists from South Korea in 2022, up 436% YoY. However, this is still 77% lower than the figure in 2019.

The new rules allow investors to decide whether to hold the stock until the dividend record date after knowing the dividend amount in advance.
The new rules will be applied starting with the annual dividends for this fiscal year. We will know this year’s yearend dividend amount before deciding whether to receive it.
From a trading perspective, the yearend dividend arb targeting ex-date mispricing will no longer be effective, which will likely change the swing trading strategy at the beginning of the year.

SK Biopharmaceuticals Co Ltd (326030 KS) is reporting continued stellar performance of its flagship drug Xcopri (cenobamate) in the U.S., with 9M2022 sales rising 137% YoY to KRW119B.
Since its launch, Xcopri maintained strong momentum in US in terms of prescription volume. Xcopri reported 1.8x higher launching TRx than recently launched competitive anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs).
The company plans to launch cenobamate in the Middle East and Africa this year, following launches in the U.S., China, Japan, and major countries in Europe.

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