PER, EPS, PBR and BPS are calculated in-house from the last 4 quarters (2025Q3–2026Q2) · Dividend yield is based on ₩37 per share · Prices as of the 2026-10-02 close
Daeju Industrial, built on livestock feed and pet food, has improved its operating margin for four straight years even as controlling shareholder net profit has fallen for two consecutive years since peaking in 2023.
Operating margin rose steadily from 5.6% to 10.5% between 2022 and 2025.
Yet controlling shareholder net profit fell from a peak of KRW 10.1 billion in 2023 to KRW 8.3 billion in 2024 and KRW 6.8 billion in 2025.
The company has disclosed a strategy to expand its pet food business in response to pet market growth.
The company relies on imports for most of its grain raw materials, making its cost structure sensitive to global grain prices and the won-dollar exchange rate.
Profit slowed in the first quarter of 2026 before revenue and operating profit recovered in the second quarter.
Daeju Industrial is a food company built on two pillars, compound livestock feed and pet food, producing swine, poultry, canine, and cattle feed at its Incheon plant and pet food at its Janghang plant in Seocheon, Chungcheongnam-do.
Both production sites hold HACCP certification, reflecting a formal quality-control system. The company has one consolidated subsidiary, Namjeon Trading.
In the past, sales were split roughly evenly between livestock feed and pet food, around a 50:50 ratio as of 2019, but the business mix has since shifted as the company strategically expands pet food in response to growth in the pet market.
The company has stated that it is raising the pet food share of sales through premium product development and capacity expansion.
Management attributes continued pet food market growth to demographic shifts including rising single-person households, an aging population, and low birth rates, all of which are expanding the pet-owning population.
By contrast, the livestock feed market appears to be in a slower-growth phase amid imported livestock product inflows, with intense competition among large players.
Because most raw grains such as corn, wheat, and soybean meal are imported, the company's cost structure is directly exposed to swings in global grain prices and exchange rates.
| Quarter | Revenue | Operating profit | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025Q2 | ₩24.9B | ₩2.1B | 8.4% |
| 2025Q3 | ₩24B | ₩2.5B | 10.4% |
| 2025Q4 | ₩26.5B | ₩3.5B | 13.1% |
| 2026Q1 | ₩25B | ₩2B | 7.9% |
| 2026Q2 | ₩25.3B | ₩2.6B | 10.1% |
| Year | Revenue | Operating profit | Net income (parent) | Op. margin | ROE | Debt-to-equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | ₩99.2B | ₩5.5B | ₩4.3B | 5.6% | 6.3% | 52.5% |
| 2023 | ₩105B | ₩7.7B | ₩10.1B | 7.3% | 13.2% | 45.2% |
| 2024 | ₩106B | ₩10B | ₩8.3B | 9.5% | 10.0% | 33.4% |
| 2025 | ₩101B | ₩10.6B | ₩6.8B | 10.5% | 6.0% | 31.5% |
Consolidated basis (financial statements including subsidiaries) · Final figures from DART filings · Net income attributable to owners of the parent · Data as of 2026-08-23
Consolidated revenue rose from KRW 99.2 billion in 2022 to KRW 105.0 billion in 2023 and KRW 106.0 billion in 2024, before slipping to KRW 101.0 billion in 2025.
Operating profit, in contrast, climbed for four consecutive years, from KRW 5.5 billion in 2022 to KRW 7.7 billion in 2023, KRW 10.0 billion in 2024, and KRW 10.6 billion in 2025, with operating margin steadily improving from 5.6% to 10.5%.
Controlling shareholder net profit, however, moved in the opposite direction after peaking at KRW 10.1 billion in 2023, falling to KRW 8.3 billion in 2024 and KRW 6.8 billion in 2025.
This divergence suggests that rising operating profit has not directly translated into higher net profit, pointing to non-operating items or tax effects playing a larger role in net profit swings.
On a quarterly basis, fourth-quarter 2025 revenue and operating profit (KRW 26.5 billion and KRW 3.5 billion) were the largest of the most recent five quarters, yet controlling shareholder net profit was the smallest at roughly KRW 1.0 billion.
In the first quarter of 2026, revenue of KRW 25.0 billion, operating profit of KRW 2.0 billion, and net profit of KRW 1.6 billion all declined from the prior quarter, and according to a market data provider, first-quarter 2026 results fell year-over-year by 2.2% in revenue, 23.7% in operating profit, and 22.7% in net profit (preliminary, as tracked by Wiseport as of August 2026).
The second quarter of 2026 showed a rebound, with revenue of KRW 25.3 billion, operating profit of KRW 2.6 billion, and net profit of KRW 1.9 billion, both revenue and operating profit recovering from the prior quarter.
Operating cash flow, a gauge of cash-generating capacity, rose steadily from KRW 6.9 billion in 2022 to KRW 14.9 billion in 2025, indicating a clear improvement in earnings quality.
Korea's compound feed industry is a mature sector tied to livestock product consumption and farm-level feed demand, and it is currently seen as facing both slowing growth and intensifying competition among large players.
At the same time, growing perception of pets as family members has made pet food a segment expected to keep growing alongside premiumization.
On the raw material side, Korea imports most of the wheat, corn, and soybeans used in feed and food, and the country's grain self-sufficiency rate, including feed use, remains in the low twenty-percent range.
As a result, when global grain prices rise, import unit costs rise, and when combined with a weaker won, the landed cost in Korea can move even more sharply than the international price.
In 2026, U.S. wheat production is set to fall to its lowest level since the 1970s while global corn ending stocks decline, leaving upside cost pressure on feed grains for certain items.
On the policy side, the zero-duty tariff-rate quota for feed corn remains unchanged at 11 million metric tons for 2026, which partly cushions cost pressure. However, imports beyond the quota face a 328% out-of-quota tariff, keeping raw material procurement planning and volume management an important variable.
The company has disclosed a strategic priority on pet food, aiming to keep expanding the pet food share of sales through premium product development and capacity expansion in response to pet market growth.
This is understood as a response to a growing pet-owning population driven by demographic shifts such as rising single-person households, an aging population, and low birth rates.
On the livestock feed side, recent results confirm continued efforts to lift gross and operating profit through higher-quality raw material use and production process improvements.
Still, volatility in global grain prices and exchange rates remains a core variable in the cost structure, meaning the persistence of the operating margin improvement will hinge on cost stability.
The dip in first-quarter 2026 profit followed by a recovery in revenue and operating profit in the second quarter illustrates that profit volatility remains significant depending on quarterly cost and selling-price conditions.
On the balance sheet, equity grew from KRW 69.0 billion in 2022 to KRW 111.9 billion in 2025 while the debt ratio fell from 52.5% to 31.5%, showing improving financial stability separate from top-line trends.
Going forward, upcoming quarterly results together with changes in the pet food sales mix and grain cost trends are likely to be the key variables shaping the profit trajectory.
The current share price trades below the company's per-share net asset value, placing it in a discount range relative to net assets. The price multiple relative to earnings appears to sit near the middle of the company's historical valuation band, neither at an extreme high nor low.
The dividend yield tends to fluctuate with net profit levels and dividend policy changes, so more attention may be warranted on operating margin improvement and earnings quality than on the dividend itself.
Another factor to weigh in valuation is that controlling shareholder net profit declined for two straight years after peaking in 2023, though recent quarters show signs of a renewed recovery.
Given its small market capitalization, price volatility driven by trading volume and supply-demand conditions also tends to be relatively large.
PER, EPS, PBR and BPS are all calculated in-house (the same method as Naver and Toss) · Dividend yield = cash dividend per share from DART filings (supplemented by KRX) ÷ current price · As of 2026-08-23
Operating margin rose for four straight years, from 5.6% in 2022 to 10.5% in 2025. Operating profit over the same period grew from KRW 5.5 billion to KRW 10.6 billion, showing profitability improving independently of top-line size.
Company disclosures also point to higher-quality raw material use and production process improvements contributing to gross and operating profit gains.
The company has stated a strategy to keep expanding its pet food sales mix through premium product development and capacity expansion.
Growth in the pet-owning population, driven by demographic shifts such as more single-person households and an aging society, is cited as a structural growth backdrop for the pet food market. A broader premiumization trend, driven by rising perception of pets as family members, is also a favorable industry backdrop.
Equity grew from KRW 69.0 billion in 2022 to KRW 111.9 billion in 2025, while the debt ratio fell from 52.5% to 31.5%. Operating cash flow also rose steadily from KRW 6.9 billion in 2022 to KRW 14.9 billion in 2025, indicating an improved ability to convert profit into cash. This reflects a shift toward lower reliance on external financing and a larger financial buffer.
Operating profit rose every year from 2022 to 2025, but controlling shareholder net profit fell for two straight years after peaking at KRW 10.1 billion in 2023, dropping to KRW 8.3 billion in 2024 and KRW 6.8 billion in 2025.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, revenue and operating profit were the largest of the most recent five quarters, yet net profit was the smallest at roughly KRW 1.0 billion. Recurrence of this gap makes it difficult to assume net profit recovery from operating profit improvement alone.
A market data provider assesses that slowing growth in the compound feed market, inflows of imported livestock products, and excessive competition among large companies are weighing on results. Given the mature nature of the market with limited domestic farm demand, top-line expansion could face structural limits. If price competition with larger rivals intensifies, the operating margin improvement trend could also slow.
Because most feed raw materials such as corn, wheat, and soybeans are imported, costs are directly exposed to swings in global grain prices and the won-dollar exchange rate. In 2026, factors such as reduced U.S. wheat production and declining global corn ending stocks leave upside cost risk for certain grains.
Recurring episodes of geopolitical instability stoking grain futures prices have kept cost volatility a structural feature.
Because most grain raw materials are sourced overseas, a simultaneous rise in international grain prices and the won-dollar exchange rate can push landed costs up more sharply than the international price itself.
Recurring geopolitical instability that stokes grain futures prices keeps cost volatility a persistent variable. If price increases fail to offset cost increases, margin pressure could resurface.
The zero-duty tariff-rate quota for feed corn remains in place for 2026, but imports beyond the quota face a 328% out-of-quota tariff. Future adjustments to tariff or quota rules could directly affect the cost structure.
Tightening food-ingredient regulations, such as expanded genetically modified food labeling, could also influence sourcing strategy.
The livestock compound feed market is assessed as mature, showing both slowing growth and intensifying competition among large players. Continued inflows of imported livestock products could limit the domestic feed demand base. If pet food expansion does not proceed as planned, growth drivers could be constrained.
The 2026 third-quarter report filing date, a point to check whether the revenue and operating profit recovery seen in the second quarter continues.
Global corn and wheat futures prices, the won-dollar exchange rate, and updated USDA supply forecasts should be monitored to gauge changes in cost pressure.
The 2026 annual report filing date, a point to check whether the annual operating margin improvement trend continues, along with dividend policy and any disclosure of the pet food sales mix.
Any disclosure regarding pet food capacity expansion or new product launches would provide concrete evidence of progress on the strategy to expand the pet food sales mix.
Daeju Industrial is a food company built on livestock feed and pet food, and its operating margin improved steadily from 5.6% to 10.5% between 2022 and 2025.
However, controlling shareholder net profit moved in the opposite direction, declining for two straight years after peaking in 2023, and while non-operating factors may explain this gap, the specific cause is not clearly identified in public disclosures.
The profit slowdown in the first quarter of 2026 followed by a recovery in revenue and operating profit in the second quarter shows that quarterly volatility remains significant. The balance sheet shows a clear improving trend, with equity expanding, the debt ratio declining, and operating cash flow rising.
High dependence on imported raw materials leaves the company persistently exposed to cost risk from global grain prices and exchange rates, and pet food expansion stands out as a key variable for future growth.
Investors may want to track upcoming quarterly results alongside grain cost trends and changes in the pet food sales mix.
Report written 2026-09-05 · Data as of 2026-09-04
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