Fns Tech

Founded in 2002, FNSTech is a specialist in wet-process equipment for display manufacturing, operating through two business units: equipment manufacturing and materials/parts.

The equipment unit centers on etching, stripping, and cleaning equipment for OLED processes, along with open metal mask (OMM) cleaning equipment, with Samsung Display as its primary customer.

The materials/parts unit comprises chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) pads, UV and halogen lamps, and total organic carbon (TOC) oxidation units, serving semiconductor customers including Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, TSMC, and CXMT.

In H2 2025, the company acquired a 62.96% stake in Taiwan-based halogen lamp maker Asahi Lamp, consolidating it as a subsidiary, and raised its stake to roughly 80% with an additional purchase in July 2026.

Its subsidiaries also include MS Solution, an automation design and manufacturing firm for semiconductor and OLED equipment.

As a new growth area, the company is developing large-area CMP pads and through-glass-via (TGV) etching and cleaning equipment for semiconductor glass substrate packaging, building on its existing OLED glass-substrate etching technology.

Its disclosed value-up plan includes supplying equipment and consumables for 8.6-generation IT OLED and big-tech foldable OLED production, expanding CMP pad share for HBM, stabilizing mass production of glass-substrate CMP pads, and expanding lamp sales overseas. The largest shareholder group, led by Han Kyung-hee and related parties, holds a 32.60% stake.

Consolidated revenue in 2025 came to KRW 73.66 billion, down from KRW 88.48 billion in 2024, yet operating profit rose to KRW 10.35 billion from KRW 8.81 billion, lifting the operating margin from 10.0% to 14.1%.

In contrast, net income attributable to owners fell sharply to KRW 8.69 billion in 2025 from KRW 13.99 billion in 2024, with the elevated 2024 figure likely reflecting some one-off items such as asset disposals.

On a quarterly basis, revenue surged to KRW 29.88 billion in Q2 2025 before quickly declining to KRW 17.21 billion in Q3 and KRW 13.52 billion in Q4, a pattern attributable to the timing of revenue recognition on equipment supply contracts with Samsung Display.

Entering 2026, revenue levels of KRW 12.95 billion in Q1 and KRW 14.04 billion in Q2 remained below the Q2 2025 peak, but operating profit of KRW 3.50 billion and KRW 3.76 billion, respectively, pushed the operating margin above 27%, reflecting a shrinking share of lower-margin equipment revenue and a growing contribution from materials/parts including Asahi Lamp.

Owners' net income held steady through H1 2026 at KRW 2.67 billion in Q1 and KRW 2.94 billion in Q2. Over the trailing four quarters (Q3 2025 through Q2 2026), owners' net income totaled KRW 9.31 billion, supporting the directional narrative of earnings recovery.

Still, given the company's revenue trough of KRW 38.88 billion and operating profit of just KRW 2.28 billion in 2023, quarter-to-quarter volatility remains a characteristic worth monitoring.

The display equipment industry remains heavily influenced by the OLED investment cycles of Samsung Display and LG Display, with 8.6-generation IT OLED and foldable OLED line expansions currently the dominant themes.

LG Display's decision to make a large additional investment in its OLED production facility in Haiphong, Vietnam illustrates the continuing shift toward OLED-centered portfolios.

In semiconductor back-end processes, rising HBM stacking counts and finer process nodes are increasing the importance of CMP steps, driving a structural rise in demand for related materials.

The nascent glass-substrate packaging ecosystem, in which Intel, SKC, and Samsung Electro-Mechanics are participating, is viewed by the industry as having potential to raise both CMP pad consumption and average selling prices given the higher process difficulty versus organic core substrates.

On the competitive front, ESTI competes in the display wet-equipment space, and some volume has been reallocated in the market since Semes wound down its display wet-equipment business.

In CMP pads, collaboration with domestic polishing-material makers such as Daewon Chemical is underway, reflecting a division of roles within the supply chain.

Overall, the display segment continues to alternate between down-cycles and up-cycles tied to customer investment timing, while the semiconductor materials/parts segment is positioning itself as a relatively more stable revenue base.

In its disclosed value-up plan, the company set a goal of completing mass-production facility investment for large-area CMP pads for semiconductor glass substrates by H1 2026, with full-scale shipments to begin in the second half.

Supply of CMP pads for HBM3E and HBM4 to Samsung Electronics is expanding, and Hyundai Motor Securities noted in a July 2026 report that quality evaluations are underway at another domestic memory maker, with supply potentially starting by year-end if the evaluation is passed.

The same report also indicated that supply of glass-substrate CMP pads could begin once customer quality evaluations are cleared.

In July 2026, the company began joint development of a CMP sub-pad for AI-semiconductor glass substrates with Daewon Chemical, aiming to improve process stability through optimized large-area pad and sub-pad combinations.

On the display side, the company's plan includes supporting parts-cleaning business tied to a domestic display maker's mass production of 8.6-generation IT OLED and expanded foldable OLED output for a major technology customer.

SK Securities estimated in a March 2026 report that 2026 revenue would rise 22.6% year over year to KRW 90.3 billion and operating profit would increase 82.6% to KRW 19.2 billion, citing a full year of Asahi Lamp consolidation and improving scale and profitability in the materials/parts business.

With its Asahi Lamp stake now raised to roughly 80%, the subsidiary's future earnings contribution could grow further.