[Edaily Reporter KIM YOON-JEONG ] SamsungSecurities projected that while cost pressures for KUMHOTIRECO.,INC(073240)are expected to ease after peaking in the third quarter, the potential resumption of dividends and the revaluation of the Gwangju plant site will serve as drivers of corporate value growth.

On the 30th, Lim Eun-young, an analyst at SamsungSecurities, stated, “Following the conversion of retained earnings on a consolidated basis in 2025, the net loss on a standalone basis is also shrinking,” adding, “The possibility of resuming dividends and the revaluation of the Gwangju plant’s asset value are factors driving a re-rating.”
Although cost pressures across the tire industry have increased due to the recent surge in oil and butadiene prices following the war in the Middle East, she predicted that the impact would gradually ease.
Analyst Lim explained, “Given the 3- to 6-month lag in raw material inventory, there will be some limited pressure in the second quarter, but costs are expected to peak in the third quarter and then decline.” She added, “Logistics costs also have limited short-term volatility due to advance contract structures—one-year contracts in the U.S. and six-month contracts in Europe.”
He continued, “Starting in the second quarter, we implemented price increases of 3–5% in Asia and South Korea, and we plan to pursue similar price increases in Europe and the U.S. during the third quarter.” He analyzed, “Even when U.S. tariffs were imposed last year, we offset about half of the tariff burden through price increases of approximately 7% in the second half of the year. Furthermore, with new model launches scheduled for the third quarter in Europe and the U.S., we expect to see improvements in the product mix as well.”
He assessed that the European market still has significant room for growth in the medium to long term. Researcher Lim noted, “Amid capacity expansion gaps among Tier-1 manufacturers and narrowing quality gaps, Tier-2 companies continue to expand their market share (M/S).” He added, “KUMHOTIRECO.,INC’s first-quarter sales in Europe reached 3400억 won, a 4.8% increase year-over-year, and since the proportion of European sales remains lower compared to domestic competitors, there is room for further expansion.”
He viewed the European Union’s (EU) anti-dumping duties as a short-term burden but believed the company has sufficient capacity to respond. He said, “We plan to respond by adjusting production locations for volumes from Korea and Vietnam to reduce our reliance on Chinese-made tires,” and predicted, “Investing approximately 8600억 won in Poland to establish a production base with an annual capacity of 6 million tires will help alleviate the tariff burden, reduce logistics costs, and improve our responsiveness to local original equipment (OE) manufacturers.”
He also analyzed that the value of the Gwangju plant site is likely to be reevaluated. Researcher Lim explained, “As the Gwangju Airport site has recently been mentioned as one of the three leading candidate sites for the Honam semiconductor investment plan, interest in the value of the nearby Gwangju plant site is also growing,” adding, “If the investment details are finalized, there is potential for an increase in the site’s value and a faster sale.”
He also assessed that the likelihood of resuming dividends is increasing. “The company transitioned to a consolidated retained earnings structure by the end of 2025, and its standalone accumulated deficit had been reduced to 455억 won by the end of the first quarter of 2026,” he said. “If the current profit trend continues, there is a high probability of converting to retained earnings within the year.”
He added, “Given that the company has been continuously reviewing dividend policies, the elimination of the accumulated deficit is a factor that increases the likelihood of resuming dividends, which have been suspended since 2007.”
SamsungSecurities projected that KUMHOTIRECO.,INC.’s second-quarter results would show revenue of 1.28 trillion won (up 5.2% year-over-year), operating profit of 145.8 billion won (down 16.8%), and an operating profit margin of 11.3%, based on the FnGuide Inc. consensus. Analyst Lim assessed, “At current stock prices, the 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio (PER) of 4.1x represents a 65% discount compared to global tire peers, and given the company’s double-digit operating profitability, there is room for a re-rating.”