By Kwanwoo Jun
Posco Holdings is scheduled to report third-quarter results Tuesday. Here’s what you need to know:
NET PROFIT FORECAST: The South Korean steelmaker is forecast to post net profit of 794.84 billion won ($588.6 million) for the July-September quarter, a FactSet consensus estimate shows. That would be up 34% from the same period a year earlier.
REVENUE FORECAST: The company’s preliminary earnings forecasts put revenue and operating profit at KRW19 trillion and KRW1.2 trillion, respectively, for the quarter. That would be down 10% and up 33% from a year earlier, respectively.
WHAT TO WATCH:
–RECOVERY: Investors will be looking to see if Posco remains on track for recovery. The company is seen as still facing headwinds despite its turnaround earlier in 2023 from a loss caused by the storm that hit its South Korean steel mill in September 2022 and then crippled operations for months.
–STEEL DEMAND: Lower comparison bases last year can make Posco’s earnings this year look solid, but some market analysts say the company is wrestling with weak steel demand in South Korea and China, as well as higher input costs on increased coking coal prices.
–BATTERY: Declining lithium prices recently are also weighing on its battery-material business, according to market analysts.
Write to Kwanwoo Jun at [email protected]
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