In today’s briefing:
- Korea’s Next Policy Trade: Locals’ Screens for Dividend Tax Reform Plays
- Top 10 Korean Stock Picks and Key Catalysts Bi-Weekly (4 to 18 July 2025)
- POSCO Holdings (KRX: 005490.KQ | NYSE: PKX): Steel Giant in Transition with Deep-Value Appeal
- Daehan Shipbuilding Pre-IPO: Discount to Peers but Some Things to Take Note Of
Korea’s Next Policy Trade: Locals’ Screens for Dividend Tax Reform Plays
- With the governance trade fading, local desks are rotating into dividend tax reform—bipartisan tailwinds and rising political chatter are driving early positioning ahead of potential rerating.
- Local desks are screening for names with 35%+ payout and 30%+ individual ownership, key thresholds tied to the ruling party’s dividend tax reform bill gaining traction in policy circles.
- The real trade is in names with individual top holders—direct beneficiaries of the tax reform—most exposed to theme flows and likely to lead on dividend hikes if the bill passes.
Top 10 Korean Stock Picks and Key Catalysts Bi-Weekly (4 to 18 July 2025)
- In this insight, we provide the top 10 stocks picks and key catalysts in the Korean stock market for the two weeks (4 to 18 July 2025).
- Korea Electric Power (KEPCO) (015760 KS) was the best performing stock among the top 100 stocks in KOSPI in the past two weeks.
- The top 10 picks in this bi-weekly include LG Uplus, KCC, SK Hynix, Naver, Korea Kolmar, Korea Investment Holdings, Misto Holdings, Lotte Tour Development, LG Chem, and SK Inc.
POSCO Holdings (KRX: 005490.KQ | NYSE: PKX): Steel Giant in Transition with Deep-Value Appeal
- After peaking in 2021, POSCO’s performance has steadily weakened, with revenue and margins declining due to softer steel prices and macro headwinds.
- The group is gradually pivoting toward battery materials and EV supply chains via POSCO Future M, backed by large investments in lithium, cathodes, and green hydrogen.
- Despite near-term profitability pressure, the stock trades at just 0.5× book and ~4.7× EV/EBITDA, offering compelling value if its transition strategy plays out.
Daehan Shipbuilding Pre-IPO: Discount to Peers but Some Things to Take Note Of
- Daehan Shipbuilding (439260 KS) is looking to raise up to US$370m in its upcoming Korean IPO.
- It specializes in the design and construction of medium-sized (Aframax) and semi-large sized (Suezmax) vessels for crude oil and petroleum product transportation.
- In this note, we examine the IPO dynamics, and look at the firm’s valuation.
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