POSCO (PKX) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $13.17B
• Dividend Yield: 3.5%
• Average Volume (3M): 477.42K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 23.0
• Beta (1Y): 0.95
• Revenue Growth: -9.88%
• EPS Growth: -46.96%
• Country: US
• Employees: 429
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Sector Strength: 59
• Industry: Steel
• EPS (TTM): 2.00
• Shares Outstanding: 323,731,800
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 227,883
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 477,416
• PEG Ratio: N/A
• Price to Book (P/B): N/A
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.00
• Price to Cash Flow (P/CF): 0.00
• P/FCF Ratio: 0.00
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: N/A
• 1Y Price Target: $45.00
• Price Target Upside: -2.53% Downside
• Rating Consensus: Moderate Sell
• Number of Analyst Covering: 0

POSCO's overall stock score reflects strong financial stability with challenges in revenue and profit margins, mixed technical indicators, a moderate valuation, and a positive earnings call outlook. Strategic initiatives and expansions align with industry demands, but operational challenges and cash flow management need addressing to enhance future performance.

POSCO Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

POSCO Holdings Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells steel rolled products and plates in South Korea and internationally. It operates through four segments: Steel, Construction, Trading, and Others. The company offers hot and cold rolled steel, steel plates, wire rods, galvanized sheets, electrical steel, stainless steel, and titanium. It also engages in the design, manufacture, and construction of steel mills and their facilities, and commercial and residential facilities; export and import of raw materials, as well as provision of supply and purchase transactions between domestic and foreign companies, and various steel products; power generation activities; and provision of network, system integration, and logistics services. In addition, the company is involved in the engineering and construction; research and consulting; architectural design and supervision; investment in venture, energy, and technology industries; electronic commerce; intellectual property services and consulting; transporting and warehousing; real estate development, rental, sale, and management; and education and real estate business. Further, it engages in the resource development; mine development; business facility maintenance; fuel cell; iron ore and coal sales; anode reproduction; and cargo handling business, as well as operates housing business agency. Additionally, the company is involved in the IT service and DVR; electric control engineering; forest resources development; refractory materials sales and furnace maintenance; quicklime manufacturing and sales; wastewater treatment operation and maintenance; rice processing; grain sales; and social enterprise businesses. POSCO Holdings Inc. was incorporated in 1968 and is headquartered in Pohang, South Korea.

How the Company Makes Money

POSCO generates revenue primarily through the production and sale of steel products. Its major revenue streams include the sale of hot-rolled and cold-rolled sheets, plates, wire rods, and stainless steel. These products cater to various industries such as automotive, shipbuilding, and construction. The company benefits from its extensive production capacity and technological advancements, which enable it to offer high-quality products at competitive prices. POSCO also engages in strategic partnerships and joint ventures to enhance its market reach and operational efficiency, contributing to its earnings. Additionally, the company's involvement in engineering, construction, and energy sectors provides diversified income streams.

POSCO Financial Statement Overview

Summary

POSCO shows strong equity and manageable debt, ensuring financial stability. However, declining revenue and profit margins indicate operational challenges, and cash flow constraints highlight the need for improvements in liquidity and profitability management.

Income Statement

POSCO's income statement shows mixed results with a declining revenue trend from 2022 to 2024, decreasing from 84.75 trillion KRW to 72.69 trillion KRW, indicating a negative revenue growth rate. The gross profit margin decreased from 9.02% in 2022 to 7.41% in 2024, and the net profit margin declined from 3.72% in 2022 to 1.51% in 2024, reflecting pressure on profitability. EBIT and EBITDA margins have also decreased, highlighting operational challenges. Despite these declines, the company maintains positive net income and gross profit.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet of POSCO is strong with a stable equity ratio and a manageable debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49 in 2024. The company has a robust stockholders' equity of 55.39 trillion KRW, providing a solid buffer against liabilities. While total debt has increased slightly over the years, it remains within reasonable limits. The return on equity has decreased from 6.01% in 2022 to 1.98% in 2024, indicating reduced profitability from equity.

Cash Flow

POSCO's cash flow statement reflects challenges with free cash flow consistently negative in 2023 and 2024. The operating cash flow to net income ratio improved slightly to 6.09 in 2024, indicating efficient cash generation relative to net income. However, the free cash flow to net income ratio remains negative, suggesting capital expenditure outpaces cash generation. The free cash flow growth rate is negative, highlighting the need for improving cash flow management.

Breakdown
Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement		Total Revenue
72.69T	77.06T	84.75T	76.33T	57.79T
	Gross Profit
5.39T	6.32T	7.65T	11.88T	4.72T
	EBIT
2.50T	3.60T	4.85T	9.24T	4.97T
	EBITDA
6.11T	7.26T	8.53T	12.79T	6.18T
	Net Income Common Stockholders
1.09T	1.70T	3.16T	6.61T	1.58T
Balance Sheet		Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments
14.80T	17.91T	18.74T	18.16T	16.46T
	Total Assets
10.00T>	10.00T>	98.41T	91.47T	79.09T
	Total Debt
26.90T	25.90T	25.13T	22.52T	20.50T
	Net Debt
20.14T	19.23T	17.08T	17.74T	15.74T
	Total Liabilities
41.95T	41.89T	40.15T	36.67T	31.41T
	Stockholders Equity
55.39T	54.15T	52.51T	50.43T	44.33T
Cash Flow		Free Cash Flow
-1.01T	-1.06T	766.31B	2.75T	5.19T
	Operating Cash Flow
6.66T	6.17T	6.19T	6.26T	8.69T
	Investing Cash Flow
-4.49T	-7.39T	-4.22T	-5.58T	-6.26T
	Financing Cash Flow
-2.30T	-178.59B	1.32T	-768.67B	-1.09T

POSCO Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Neutral
• Last Price: 46.17
• 50DMA: Negative
• 100DMA: Negative
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For PKX, the sentiment is Neutral. The current price of 46.17 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 45.03, below the 50-day MA of 47.98, and below the 200-day MA of 54.17, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.48 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 49.92 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 63.81 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Neutral sentiment for PKX.

POSCO Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
RS	78 Outperform	$15.63B	21.31	10.27%	1.51%	-5.60%	-35.05%
MT	73 Outperform	$25.14B	18.03	2.60%	1.39%	-8.56%	68.36%
NUE	73 Outperform	$25.57B	13.10	6.54%	1.77%	-10.88%	-66.97%
STLD	73 Outperform	$20.23B	17.84	13.08%	1.39%	-7.42%	-48.08%
PKX	71 Outperform	$13.17B	23.04	1.71%	3.50%	-9.88%	-46.96%
X	64 Neutral	$9.97B	28.18	0.86%	0.45%	-13.48%	-56.94%
Sector *	49 Neutral	$1.95B	-1.37	-21.20%	3.73%	0.84%	-29.84%