Bullish indicating open at $55-$60, IPO prices at $37
Investing.com -- Orion Corp ’s (KS:271560) January sales in China fell sharply, affected by the timing of the Lunar New Year (LNY), while other markets showed mixed performances. The company’s shares closed 1.75% lower in Korea trading Tuesday.
Orion’s sales in China fell 11% year-on-year in KRW terms (down 18% in RMB), reflecting the holiday timing shift.
However, the company expects combined sales for the November 2024–February 2025 period to grow in the mid-single digits year-on-year.
In Korea, revenue rose by 1% year-on-year, with underlying sales up 2%, despite recent price hikes that had a roughly 3% impact on sales. “Demand remained slow in traditional channels,” Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) analysts noted.
Vietnam maintained strong momentum, with sales increasing 13% year-on-year in KRW terms (up about 7% in VND), despite the Tet holiday impact. Orion estimates underlying growth exceeded 10%.
Russia was the standout performer, with sales surging 36% in KRW terms (up 41% in RUB). Given a high utilization rate of over 120%, the company is considering expanding production capacity in the third quarter of 2025.
Rising input costs weighed on margins, with production expenses increasing by 4 percentage points in China, 1 percentage point in Vietnam, and 5 percentage points in Russia.
Slower production in China further pressured Orion’s operating margin, which declined by 140 basis points year-on-year.