[Edaily Reporter Kim Hyung-il ] Even as the domestic stock market plummeted, some stocks hit 52-week highs based on their closing prices. While some stocks saw their individual catalysts—such as artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure contracts, improved earnings, and tender offers—come into focus, others showed no clear new positive factors. Experts pointed out that in a highly volatile market environment like the current one, it is necessary to examine a company’s earnings, the rationale behind the rise, and supply-and-demand dynamics rather than focusing solely on the record high itself.

According to MP Doctor on the 19th, 10 stocks on the KOSPI and KOSDAQ— HanchangPaper(009460), In the F(014990), LOTTE rental(089860), DaishinInformation(020180), iCRAFT Co., Ltd.(052460), PAKERS CO., Ltd.(065690), iWIN(090150), Micro Contact Solution Co.,Ltd.(098120), GOLFZON NEWDIN HOLDINGS Co., Ltd.(121440), and e-future.Co.,Ltd.(134060) —hit 52-week highs based on their closing prices. Although the overall market was weak, with the KOSPI down 5.8% and the KOSDAQ down 1.17% from the previous trading day, some individual stocks moved in the opposite direction of the indices.

However, only a few stocks had concrete catalysts to support their price gains. Following its signing of a 104 billion won contract with Naver Cloud last month to supply high-performance AI storage, iCRAFT Co., Ltd. also signed a 45.42348 billion won supply contract with Datasolution, Inc. With these consecutive large-scale AI-related orders, there is now greater potential for the market to reflect expectations regarding future earnings.

iWIN is a stock that has shown improved earnings. In the first half of this year, consolidated revenue stood at 56.6 billion won, a 6% decrease year-over-year, but operating profit rose 30% to 5.5 billion won. Net profit surged 1,320% to 16.9 billion won. GOLFZON HOLDINGS is an example where corporate governance issues—specifically a tender offer and voluntary delisting—rather than earnings performance influenced the stock price; the largest shareholder conducted a tender offer for the remaining shares at 6,700 won per share from June 29 to August 5.

On the KOSPI, LOTTE rental also reported improved earnings. In the second quarter of this year, revenue reached 765.8 billion won and operating profit reached 84.6 billion won, up 2.3% and 9.6%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Profitability in the company’s core business improved as operating profits rose in both the long-term and short-term auto rental segments.

However, not all stocks showed clear catalysts for their gains. Among the stocks that hit record highs that day, some lacked distinct new catalysts—such as recent disclosures or earnings reports—that could directly explain the rise in share prices. In particular, for small-cap stocks, it is difficult to judge an increase in corporate value based solely on record highs, as even relatively small supply-and-demand fluctuations can lead to large price swings due to factors like trading volume and the number of shares outstanding.

Lee Jun-seo, a professor in the Department of Business Administration at Dongguk University, said, “There may be cases where strong earnings support the rise, uncovering what are often called ‘hidden gems,’ but in the case of small-cap stocks, there may also be instances where all-time highs are simply driven by speculation, regardless of intrinsic value.” He added, “There may also be cases where a major player acts as a market maker, driving the price up through supply and demand dynamics.”

Professor Lee emphasized that rather than making sweeping generalizations about the reasons behind the rise of stocks hitting record highs, investors should examine the earnings and news factors specific to each individual company. “It is necessary to take a closer look at the first-half earnings of companies that have hit record highs,” he explained, noting that investors must verify whether those earnings actually support the stock price increases.

Regarding the fact that some stocks hit record highs even as the overall market declined, as it did today, Professor Lee said, “If the price rise is due to strong earnings or positive catalysts that haven’t been announced yet, that’s fine, but if it’s a market driven by a surge in liquidity, caution is warranted.”