PER, EPS, PBR and BPS are calculated in-house from the last 4 quarters (2025Q3–2026Q2) · Dividend yield is based on ₩0 per share · Prices as of the 2026-10-02 close
Hanchang Paper suffered both revenue and profit deterioration in 2025 but has posted two consecutive quarters of operating and net profit in 2026, signaling a recovery trend.
Operating and net profit turned positive for two straight quarters in 1Q and 2Q 2026, with 2Q operating profit expanding from 1Q
2025 was an adjustment period marked by a 9.3% revenue decline and widened operating and net losses
Land revaluation at the Yangsan plant boosted equity, cutting the debt ratio from 246.6% at end-2025 to around 157% by mid-2026
The company holds roughly a 50% share of the premium ivory board market, while expanding general ivory board (No. 5 machine) sales diversifies revenue sources
Following the 5-for-1 reverse stock split in March 2026, meeting KOSPI's rising market-cap listing threshold (KRW 30 billion from January 2027) is a point to watch
Hanchang Paper has produced paper since 1973 and listed on the Korea Exchange in 1987. Its core products are premium ivory board, general ivory board, and manila board, and it pioneered the premium packaging paper market by introducing Korea's first dedicated All Pulp Board manufacturing facility.
The company supplies tobacco outer wrapping paper, packaging for IT products such as phone cases, cosmetics packaging, and paper for food and infant publications. Cosmetics-related sales are reported to account for roughly 10% of total revenue.
Korea's ivory board market is an oligopoly produced by five companies—Hansol Paper, Hanchang Paper, Kkeutan Nara, Hankuk Paper, and Sehah—with Hansol Paper ranking first and Hanchang Paper positioned among the leading players.
In the premium ivory board segment specifically, Hanchang Paper holds roughly a 50% share, giving it a relatively strong position in the premium packaging segment.
While its earnings structure was previously centered on the No. 3 machine's premium ivory board, recent price hikes and expanded sales of general ivory board from the No. 5 machine are diversifying revenue sources across the product portfolio.
Aging No. 1 and No. 2 machines were disposed of and shut down, while investment in the new No. 5 machine has strengthened production capacity and product quality competitiveness.
| Quarter | Revenue | Operating profit | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025Q2 | ₩67.4B | -₩1.7B | −2.6% |
| 2025Q3 | ₩68.7B | -₩400M | −0.6% |
| 2025Q4 | ₩65.2B | -₩1.3B | −2.1% |
| 2026Q1 | ₩65.6B | ₩1.7B | 2.6% |
| 2026Q2 | ₩71.8B | ₩4B | 5.5% |
| Year | Revenue | Operating profit | Net income (parent) | Op. margin | ROE | Debt-to-equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | ₩214.9B | ₩1.3B | ₩1.3B | 0.6% | 1.1% | 156.3% |
| 2023 | ₩276B | -₩11.5B | -₩17.5B | −4.2% | −19.2% | 217.3% |
| 2024 | ₩294.3B | ₩1.1B | ₩2.6B | 0.4% | 2.8% | 204.7% |
| 2025 | ₩267B | -₩5.2B | -₩13.1B | −1.9% | −15.8% | 246.6% |
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
On an annual basis, revenue was KRW 214.9 billion with a slight operating profit of KRW 1.29 billion in 2022, but 2023 revenue rose to KRW 276.0 billion while operating loss widened sharply to KRW 11.47 billion and net loss to KRW 17.49 billion.
In 2024, the company returned to profit with revenue of KRW 294.26 billion, operating profit of KRW 1.14 billion, and net profit of KRW 2.64 billion, only to swing back into losses in 2025 as revenue fell 9.3% to KRW 266.95 billion, with an operating loss of KRW 5.19 billion and a net loss of KRW 13.09 billion.
The 2025 downturn appears to reflect a deliberate adjustment period combining reduced low-margin volume with a restructuring of the cost base.
Quarterly losses continued through 3Q2025 (revenue KRW 68.68 billion, operating loss KRW 0.39 billion) and 4Q2025 (revenue KRW 65.24 billion, operating loss KRW 1.34 billion, net loss KRW 5.23 billion), before turning positive in 1Q2026 with revenue of KRW 65.65 billion, operating profit of KRW 1.69 billion, and net profit of KRW 0.68 billion, and expanding further in 2Q2026 to revenue of KRW 71.77 billion, operating profit of KRW 3.96 billion, and net profit of KRW 0.94 billion.
Even so, summing the most recent four quarters from 3Q2025 through 2Q2026 still shows a net loss of KRW 5.76 billion, indicating that the large losses of second-half 2025 have not yet been fully offset by the profits of first-half 2026.
On the cash flow side, operating cash flow remained positive at KRW 5.41 billion in 2025 despite the net loss, while total equity declined from KRW 110.43 billion in 2022 to KRW 82.93 billion in 2025 before showing signs of recovery following the land revaluation.
Korea's ivory board industry is an oligopoly produced by five companies—Hansol Paper, Hanchang Paper, Kkeutan Nara, Hankuk Paper, and Sehah—and the sector as a whole has moved to raise prices amid rising pulp costs and a weaker won against the dollar.
In February 2026, Hansol Paper first raised ivory board prices by about KRW 120,000 per ton (roughly 10%), and Hanchang Paper and Kkeutan Nara reportedly decided on price increases of a similar magnitude.
Since the industry sources more than 90% of its pulp purchases from the United States, cost pressure from currency fluctuations remains a persistent risk.
That said, some media outlets have compared the similarly timed and similarly sized price adjustments to past printing-paper collusion cases, raising the possibility of indirect price coordination and increased scrutiny from the Korea Fair Trade Commission.
On the demand side, the shift from plastic to paper packaging driven by ESG and environmental regulation, along with rising cosmetics packaging demand tied to expanding K-beauty exports, are cited as structural growth drivers.
However, downstream corrugated packaging companies that use ivory board as a raw material have pushed back against the price hikes, meaning the sustainability of further price increases will depend on raw material cost trends and bargaining power with downstream customers.
Management has stated its goal of making 2026 a turning point in which facility investment gains are fully reflected in earnings, and expects the effects of general ivory board (No. 5 machine) price hikes and expanded domestic and export sales to continue into the second half.
Executives have said that growth in key downstream industries including cosmetics, along with rising cosmetics packaging demand from expanding K-beauty exports, would positively affect revenue growth.
However, at the time of the 2Q earnings release, a company representative noted that prolonged conflict and rising oil and energy costs could pressure second-half costs, and stated the company would focus on defending profitability through price increases and cost improvement activities.
On the financial structure side, capital expansion from the land revaluation at the Yangsan plant (pre-revaluation book value of roughly KRW 25.6 billion) has already shown up as a lower debt ratio, a factor relevant to financial stability metrics going forward.
In March 2026, the company also carried out a 5-for-1 reverse stock split partly in response to tightened KOSPI managed-issue designation requirements involving sub-KRW-1,000 share prices and higher market-cap thresholds.
Key items to watch going forward include the extent to which second-half price increases are reflected in earnings, along with the trajectory of pulp prices and foreign exchange rates as cost variables.
On a self-calculated basis, Hanchang Paper's shares trade well below book value per share, which can be viewed as a discount relative to net assets.
However, it should also be considered that summed net profit over the most recent four quarters (3Q2025 through 2Q2026) remains in loss territory, making conventional price-to-earnings comparisons difficult in this window.
The company has not paid dividends recently, so dividend yield is not a meaningful point of comparison at this time.
Looking at the multi-year earnings pattern—profit in 2022, a large loss in 2023, a return to profit in 2024, another loss in 2025, and a renewed swing to profit in the first half of 2026—this recurring volatility is useful background when interpreting valuation.
The decline in the debt ratio from 246.6% at end-2025 to around 157% in the first half of 2026 should also be considered alongside the fact that much of this improvement stems from the accounting effect of the land revaluation.
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
Both operating and net profit were positive in 1Q and 2Q of 2026, with 2Q operating profit expanding from 1Q. The combination of price increases and last year's facility investment is expanding revenue sources to include general ivory board (No. 5 machine). The company has said it expects this improving trend to continue into the second half.
Capital expansion through the land revaluation at the Yangsan plant has lowered the debt ratio from 246.6% at end-2025 to around 157% in the first half of 2026. The revaluation surplus reflected in equity is seen as improving financial stability metrics.
However, it should be noted that this stems substantially from an accounting effect rather than operating performance improvement.
The company holds roughly a 50% share of the premium ivory board market, giving it a position that is not easily substituted in the premium packaging segment. Expanding K-beauty exports and rising demand for ivory-board-based packaging such as cosmetics container boxes have emerged as a new growth avenue. The trend of substituting paper for plastic amid ESG expansion is also cited as a structural demand driver.
Summed net profit over the four quarters from 3Q2025 through 2Q2026 was a loss of KRW 5.76 billion, meaning the profits of first-half 2026 have not yet offset the large losses of second-half 2025. The 4Q2025 net loss of KRW 5.23 billion accounted for a substantial portion of the annual result during that period. Whether the earnings recovery proves durable will need to be confirmed by further quarterly results.
Annual results have swung repeatedly—from profit in 2022 to a large loss in 2023, back to profit in 2024, and a loss again in 2025. Revenue scale also fell 9.3% from KRW 294.26 billion in 2024 to KRW 266.95 billion in 2025, without showing a stable growth path. This volatility is a factor warranting caution when assessing future earnings trends.
Since more than 90% of pulp purchases, the key raw material, are sourced from the United States, cost pressure from currency fluctuations is a persistent risk. A company representative also stated that prolonged conflict and rising oil and energy costs could pressure second-half costs. If price increases fail to fully offset rising costs, the pace of profitability improvement could slow.
Because more than 90% of pulp purchases rely on the United States, a rise in the won-dollar exchange rate directly translates into cost pressure. Rising global oil and energy costs also directly affect manufacturing costs given the capital-intensive nature of the industry. These external variables are largely outside the company's control.
Some media outlets have raised concerns comparing the similarly timed and similarly sized discount-rate reductions by ivory board producers including Hansol Paper, Hanchang Paper, and Kkeutan Nara to past printing-paper collusion cases.
With the Fair Trade Commission signaling intensified scrutiny of collusion in education- and publishing-related paper markets, there is a possibility that this pricing approach could draw regulatory attention. However, no illegality has been confirmed to date.
KOSPI raised the market-cap threshold for managed-issue designation to KRW 20 billion starting July 2026, with a further increase to KRW 30 billion scheduled for January 2027. Hanchang Paper carried out a 5-for-1 reverse stock split in March 2026 partly in response.
If market capitalization approaches these raised thresholds in the future, managed-issue designation risk could come into focus.
This is the point to check whether the operating profit expansion seen in 2Q continues into 3Q 2026 and whether price increase effects are further reflected in results.
It will be worth checking whether second-half price increase effects persist alongside won-dollar exchange rate and international pulp price trends to assess whether cost pressures are easing.
This marks when the KOSPI managed-issue market-cap threshold rises to KRW 30 billion, making it worth checking the company's market capitalization level at that time.
Downstream indicators related to cosmetics and K-beauty exports, along with changes in the share of cosmetics packaging revenue, can help confirm the actual contribution of this new growth avenue.
Hanchang Paper endured a difficult 2025 marked by declining revenue and widened operating and net losses, before entering a recovery phase with two consecutive quarters of operating and net profit in 1Q and 2Q 2026.
The combination of price increases and facility investment effects has visibly expanded revenue sources beyond premium ivory board into general ivory board. However, summed net profit over the most recent four quarters remains in loss territory, and the large losses of second-half 2025 have not been fully offset.
While capital expansion through the land revaluation at the Yangsan plant substantially lowered the debt ratio, it should be considered that this stems largely from an accounting effect.
Pulp cost and currency fluctuations, potential market scrutiny of the industry's pricing approach, and the rising KOSPI managed-issue market-cap threshold are variables that warrant continued monitoring.
The durability of the recovery will likely hinge on third-quarter results and whether second-half price increase effects prove sustainable.
Report written 2026-09-05 · Data as of 2026-09-04
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