HYMLY Hyundai Motor (PK)

By Kwanwoo Jun

SK Innovation's shares climbed Monday amid market hopes for an earnings recovery in the coming months despite the company's downbeat second-quarter results.

Shares of the South Korean energy company jumped 14% to close at 216,000 won ($169.64), outperforming the benchmark Kospi's 0.9% gain for the day. That marked the strongest daily percentage gain for SK Innovation in more than two years, according to FactSet.

Foreign and institutional investors were net buyers of the parent company of electric-vehicle battery maker SK On, a joint-venture partner of global automakers such as Ford Motor and Hyundai Motor, suggesting they have a positive earnings outlook for the company despite its below-consensus quarterly results Friday.

SK Innovation posted a wider-than-expected net loss of KRW120.44 billion for the April-June quarter on weaker oil-refining margins and a still unprofitable battery business. A forecast from FactSet had tipped a net profit.

DB Financial Investment analyst S.J. Han said in a research note Monday that he still expects SK Innovation to remain on track for an earnings recovery from the third quarter on widening oil-refining margins amid tight supply since July.

The spread for gasoline, diesel and kerosene is now improving significantly from the second quarter, likely boosting SK Innovation's third-quarter earnings, Kiwoom Securities analysts Cay Chung and Daehyun Shin said in a note released Monday.

SK Innovation's EV-battery business could turn profitable in the first half of 2024, Nomura analyst Cindy Park said in a note Monday. The anticipated profit turnaround at SK On will likely be driven by an improvement in output scale and productivity at its U.S. factory, Park said.

The Nomura analyst said she now values SK On at KRW19.2 trillion, up from KRW14.9 trillion previously.

Write to Kwanwoo Jun at kwanwoo.jun@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 31, 2023 04:22 ET (08:22 GMT)

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