[Edaily Marketin Reporter LEE GEON-EOM ] NICEHoldings announced on the 26th that it has maintained the credit rating of #Dongwon F&B’s (hereinafter “Dongwon F&B”) unsecured bonds at ‘A+’ and upgraded the credit rating outlook from “Stable” to “Positive.” The primary reasons for the upgrade in the rating outlook are the company’s robust earnings growth, driven by the strong market competitiveness of its core product lines, and the marked improvement in financial stability resulting from accumulated profits.

Dongwon F&B continues to achieve steady revenue growth, supported by stable sales performance in its food processing division and an extensive sales network in its seasoning and distribution divisions. Growth was driven by the expansion of its B2C business base and strong performance in the food ingredient distribution and institutional food service businesses amid high inflation.

In fact, the company’s key operating profitability indicators are showing a positive trend, meeting the criteria for a rating upgrade. In 2025, on a consolidated basis, the revenue-to-EBITDA ratio stood at 6.0%, and the net debt-to-EBITDA ratio was 1.99x; in the first quarter of this year, these figures improved further to 6.4% and 1.7x, respectively.

Song Young-jin, a senior researcher at NICE Ratings, stated, “In the past, the profitability of the canned tuna business tended to fluctuate with changes in tuna catch volumes, but as earnings in the seasoned food and distribution sectors have expanded significantly recently, the impact of fluctuations in a single raw material price on overall profitability has been greatly mitigated.” “Despite cost pressures, such as rising packaging material prices due to the recent war in the Middle East, the company is maintaining robust profitability through advanced product diversification and excellent operational efficiency,” he added.

Improved profitability has led to the generation of free cash flow and capital expansion, significantly boosting financial stability. The consolidated debt-to-equity ratio, which stood at 142.3% at the end of 2021, has continued to decline, falling to 94.8% as of the end of March this year; during the same period, the net debt-to-equity ratio also remained at an excellent level of 23.1%.

Senior Researcher Song explained, “Based on robust profit-generating capabilities in its core business, operating cash flow is flowing smoothly and net income is accumulating, resulting in a substantial reduction in financial leverage.” He added, “Considering the company’s solid business foundation, including the value of its tangible assets, its financial flexibility is rated very highly, and this trend of financial structure improvement is expected to continue smoothly going forward.”

However, NICE Ratings noted that external variables and investment activities at the affiliate level will be key areas for monitoring going forward.

Senior Researcher Song said, “While prices for major global raw materials are generally stable, international tuna prices remain high compared to the same period last year due to factors such as low catches in major fishing grounds,” adding, “Cost pressures resulting from the high exchange rate also persist.”

He continued, “Under the ‘Global Food Division’ structure established following DongwonIndustries’ acquisition of Dongwon F&B as a wholly-owned subsidiary last July, DongwonIndustries has announced plans to focus on global mergers and acquisitions (M&A),” adding, “We also plan to continuously monitor the possibility that large-scale investments at the group level could translate into a financial burden for Dongwon F&B.”