South Korea’s biggest defense company, Hanwha Aerospace, fell more than 6 percent on Tuesday, after the company reported worse-than-expected numbers for its fourth-quarter revenue and pre-tax profit on Monday.
Revenue in the fourth quarter surged 72.56 percent year-on-year to 8.33 trillion South Korean won, but failed to meet LSEG estimates of 8.64 trillion won.
Pre-tax profit dropped 72 percent to 602 billion won, which is a huge discrepancy from the expectations of 1.2 trillion won, and the operating profit of the company fell 16 percent to 753 billion won.
However, the net profit was a top spot, coming in above expectations amid a 54 percent decline at 934 billion won. Pre-tax profit had a slight decline of 2.15 trillion won a year later, a drop of 19 percent, compared to a year ago, and against expectations of 2.73 trillion.
Hanwha had recorded its fourth year of record operating profits, and net profit figures were higher than expected. The operating profit increased 75 percent YoY to 3.03 trillion won, and the net profit decreased 16 percent annually to 2.14 trillion won, which was above the expectation of 1.65 trillion won.
On the year-to-date, Hanwha shares have gained 18.92 percent, after being on a torrent in 2025, with shares surging 193 percent, on top of a 154 percent increase in 2024.
Therefore, the Hanwha is the 11th biggest share on the Kospi and has a market worth approximated to be $42.03 billion. The demands of the company in its defense platforms increased following the Russia-Ukraine War, as several European nations ordered its defense platforms.
Hanwha has sold its K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer to Poland, Estonia, Romania, and Norway, and its Chunmoo multiple launch rocket systems since 2022.
