PER, EPS, PBR and BPS are calculated in-house from the last 4 quarters (2025Q3–2026Q2) · Dividend yield is based on ₩125 per share · Prices as of the 2026-10-02 close
Daihan Scientific posted improved revenue and operating profit in 2025 versus the prior year, marking a profit recovery, against a backdrop of the government's record research and development budget.
2025 consolidated revenue reached KRW 81.1 billion and operating profit KRW 5.53 billion, improving from the prior year with operating margin rising to 6.8%.
On a quarterly basis, operating profit fell sharply to around KRW 0.6 billion in Q4 2025 before recovering through Q1-Q2 2026.
The government's 2026 R&D budget was set at a record KRW 35.3 trillion, up 19.3% year-over-year.
Through subsidiary Daihan Medical, the company expanded its medical refrigerator/freezer lineup and newly launched North American online sales via Amazon.
The share price trades below the company's book value per share.
Founded in 1980, Daihan Scientific is a distributor and manufacturer of laboratory equipment and consumables, supplying lab benches, refrigerators/freezers, stirrers, dryers, and analytical instruments both domestically and abroad under its own DAIHAN brand.
The company develops and produces globally competitive premium products in-house for domestic research institutions and also exports under the DAIHAN brand to more than 70 countries including Europe, North America, and Japan.
Automated logistics centers in Wonju and Daejeon give the company a rapid delivery system, and it operates through a nationwide network of 43 agency and branch offices under the DAIHAN Family sales organization.
Overseas, the company runs a global distribution network through local subsidiaries in the United States and China as well as franchise entities across Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.
More recently, through subsidiary Daihan Medical the company has built out a full lineup of medical refrigerators and freezers, expanding into the medical device field, and has newly launched a North American online sales channel via Amazon.
Its revenue base is heavily dependent on R&D demand sources such as universities, government-funded research institutes, and corporate research labs, meaning performance is closely tied to government R&D budget cycles and private research investment.
The competitive landscape is a mix of small domestic laboratory equipment distributors and global brands, with the company positioned as one of the largest domestic suppliers combining in-house manufacturing with comprehensive distribution capability.
This combined distribution-and-manufacturing structure supports revenue diversification but also exposes the company to cost and foreign-exchange fluctuations.
| Quarter | Revenue | Operating profit | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025Q2 | ₩19B | ₩1.7B | 8.9% |
| 2025Q3 | ₩21.2B | ₩2.3B | 10.9% |
| 2025Q4 | ₩25.2B | ₩600M | 2.4% |
| 2026Q1 | ₩17.6B | ₩1B | 5.5% |
| 2026Q2 | ₩21.6B | ₩2.1B | 9.6% |
| Year | Revenue | Operating profit | Net income (parent) | Op. margin | ROE | Debt-to-equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | ₩72.3B | ₩7.2B | ₩4.7B | 10.0% | 12.9% | 33.8% |
| 2023 | ₩73.7B | ₩6.2B | ₩3.8B | 8.4% | 9.8% | 31.4% |
| 2024 | ₩71.7B | ₩4.2B | ₩2.7B | 5.9% | 6.4% | 28.3% |
| 2025 | ₩81.1B | ₩5.5B | ₩3.3B | 6.8% | 7.3% | 27.2% |
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 moved from KRW 72.28 billion in 2022 to KRW 73.70 billion in 2023 and KRW 71.69 billion in 2024, before rising to KRW 81.12 billion in 2025, the highest of the four years.
Operating profit declined from KRW 7.22 billion (10.0% operating margin) in 2022 to KRW 6.17 billion (8.4%) in 2023 and KRW 4.23 billion (5.9%) in 2024, before rebounding to KRW 5.53 billion (6.8%) in 2025, entering a margin-recovery phase.
Net income attributable to owners similarly fell to KRW 2.69 billion in 2024 before rising to KRW 3.28 billion in 2025.
On a quarterly basis, Q3 2025 stood out with revenue of KRW 21.21 billion, operating profit of KRW 2.31 billion, and owners' net income of KRW 1.69 billion, whereas Q4 2025 saw the largest quarterly revenue at KRW 25.20 billion yet operating profit fell sharply to KRW 0.60 billion and owners' net income to just KRW 0.04 billion, showing a clear divergence between revenue and profit.
Revenue then eased seasonally to KRW 17.59 billion in Q1 2026 with operating profit of KRW 0.97 billion and net income of KRW 0.55 billion, before recovering in Q2 2026 to revenue of KRW 21.62 billion, operating profit of KRW 2.07 billion, and owners' net income of KRW 1.29 billion.
Owners' net income summed over the most recent four quarters (Q3 2025 through Q2 2026) reached roughly KRW 3.57 billion, above the full-year 2024 figure of KRW 2.69 billion.
On the cash-flow side, operating cash flow rose from KRW 4.51 billion in 2022 to KRW 5.44 billion in 2025, improving alongside the profit recovery.
However, the sharp profit drop in Q4 2025 lacks a specifically disclosed cause in public filings, illustrating a business structure with relatively high profit volatility relative to revenue.
Daihan Scientific's primary end market is research and development investment by universities, government-funded research institutes, and corporate research labs, meaning government R&D budget cycles have a direct impact on performance.
The government's 2026 R&D budget was set at a record KRW 35.3 trillion, up 19.3% from the prior year's KRW 29.6 trillion. Within that, the basic research budget was set at KRW 2.74 trillion, up 17.2% year-over-year, with the number of supported projects also expanding.
In addition, the 2027 budget proposal increased R&D spending by KRW 4 trillion (11.2%) over this year to KRW 39.5 trillion, indicating a continued government stance of supporting research infrastructure and equipment investment.
However, this budget proposal must still pass National Assembly deliberation before final approval, so actual execution scale and timing could be adjusted during that process.
The laboratory equipment distribution industry has relatively low barriers to entry, resulting in a competitive landscape with numerous small domestic distributors alongside global brands, where price competition alongside in-house manufacturing and sourcing capability and delivery/service networks serve as differentiating factors.
The company is regarded as having a relatively advantageous position in government and research institution procurement given its combination of the largest domestic comprehensive lab equipment supply network with its own manufacturing brand, though budget-timing and execution-delay driven seasonality is a common feature across the industry.
The company does not appear to have publicly disclosed quantified revenue or profit guidance, but an improving trend is evident in the cumulative nine-month figures through Q3 2025, with revenue up 11.9%, operating profit up 69.0%, and net income up 81.0% year-over-year.
This improvement is attributed to expanded sales of research consumables and lab equipment, strong sales of self-manufactured products, and broader product supply through global sourcing.
The buildout of a full medical refrigerator/freezer lineup through subsidiary Daihan Medical represents an expansion from the core research-equipment business into the medical device field, while the launch of North American online sales via Amazon can be read as securing a new overseas sales channel.
However, segment-level revenue contributions from either initiative have not yet been separately disclosed, so their concrete scale remains unconfirmed.
On the policy side, the government's 2027 R&D budget proposal of KRW 39.5 trillion has been submitted to the National Assembly, with actual execution scale and sector allocation to be clarified through year-end deliberation and finalization.
The fact that revenue and profit recovered together in Q2 2026 after a Q1 2026 low point suggests a recurring seasonal pattern, making it worth monitoring whether this recovery trend continues in the upcoming Q3 results.
The current share price trades below the company's book value per share, placing the price-to-book ratio in a sub-1x range.
On the earnings side, a recovery trend is visible following the 2024 low point, extending through 2025 and into the first half of 2026, and whether this trajectory continues going forward is a key variable in interpreting valuation.
On the dividend side, the company is confirmed to pay cash dividends, but the absolute level of dividend yield can shift with market conditions and share price movements, making it difficult to characterize with a fixed figure.
Given multi-year earnings swings (operating margin falling from 10.0% in 2022 to 5.9% in 2024 before rebounding to 6.8% in 2025), how much of this earnings volatility is reflected in the current valuation level is open to differing interpretation among investors.
Relative multiple comparisons against other laboratory equipment distributors and manufacturers can shift over time, so readers should refer to current on-screen data for the most up-to-date figures.
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 fell to 5.9% in 2024 before rebounding to 6.8% in 2025, and Q2 2026 operating profit of KRW 2.07 billion approached the Q3 2025 level of KRW 2.31 billion. Owners' net income summed over the most recent four quarters, at roughly KRW 3.57 billion, has already surpassed the full-year 2024 figure. If this trend continues, the profit-improvement trajectory could persist.
The 2026 government R&D budget reached a record KRW 35.3 trillion, up 19.3% year-over-year, with the basic research budget also up 17.2%. The 2027 budget proposal calls for a further increase to KRW 39.5 trillion.
A policy environment is forming in which research institution and university procurement demand for laboratory equipment could expand.
Through subsidiary Daihan Medical, the company has built out a full medical refrigerator/freezer lineup, expanding into the medical device field, and has newly secured a North American online sales channel via Amazon.
Beyond its existing research-equipment distribution business, revenue-source diversification through new channels and product lines is underway.
In Q4 2025, revenue reached the highest quarterly level of KRW 25.20 billion, yet operating profit fell sharply to KRW 0.60 billion and owners' net income to just KRW 0.04 billion. This divergence confirms that revenue growth does not always translate directly into profit.
Revenue actually declined from KRW 72.28 billion in 2022 to KRW 71.69 billion in 2024 before rising to KRW 81.12 billion in 2025, while operating margin remains lower than before, at 6.8% in 2025 versus 10.0% in 2022. Across the full four-year period, the pattern shows repeated fluctuation rather than clear top-line growth.
The laboratory equipment distribution business has relatively low barriers to entry, resulting in competition between small domestic firms and global brands.
Given the share of overseas sourcing, the company is exposed to cost and foreign-exchange fluctuations, which can be interpreted as one factor behind the decline in operating margin since 2022.
The proposed 2027 R&D budget of KRW 39.5 trillion still requires National Assembly deliberation before finalization. Adjustments to specific program budgets or delays in execution timing during deliberation could affect the timing of research institutions' laboratory equipment orders.
Given the product supply structure through global sourcing and exports to more than 70 countries, exchange rate fluctuations and changes in raw material and logistics costs can affect revenue and margins.
As seen in the sharp profit decline in Q4 2025, it cannot be ruled out that cost factors could concentrate in specific quarters.
The laboratory equipment distribution industry has low entry barriers, resulting in ongoing competition between small domestic distributors and global brands. The company's new medical device business and North American online sales channel are each also exposed to competition from existing players in those areas.
Expected timing for the Q3 2026 (July-September) consolidated earnings disclosure, when it will be worth checking whether the Q2 recovery trend continued into Q3.
Timing to check whether the National Assembly finalizes the proposed 2027 government R&D budget (KRW 39.5 trillion) and its detailed allocation, which directly relates to research institutions' laboratory equipment purchasing budgets.
Timing for the disclosure of full-year 2026 results and dividend (per-share dividend amount), allowing confirmation of whether the annual profit-recovery trend continued and whether shareholder-return policy has changed.
If segment-level revenue contributions from Daihan Medical's medical device business and North American online sales via Amazon are separately disclosed, this would allow gauging the actual performance of these new business lines.
Daihan Scientific entered a recovery phase in 2025 with revenue of KRW 81.1 billion and operating profit of KRW 5.53 billion, following a slowdown in revenue and margins from 2022 to 2024, and revenue and profit rebounded together in Q2 2026 after a Q1 2026 low.
However, periods such as Q4 2025—when revenue was at its highest but profit fell sharply—confirm that the business structure carries relatively high quarter-to-quarter earnings volatility.
The fact that the government's 2026 R&D budget was set at a record KRW 35.3 trillion, with the 2027 budget proposal calling for a further increase to KRW 39.5 trillion, is cited as a positive backdrop for the research-investment environment that constitutes the company's core demand base, though actual execution scale and timing must still be confirmed through National Assembly deliberation.
The expansion into medical devices through subsidiary Daihan Medical and the launch of North American online sales via Amazon can be read as attempts at revenue diversification, but their concrete contribution remains unconfirmed as segment-level results have not yet been separately disclosed.
The share price trades below the company's book value per share, and the persistence of the profit-recovery trend should be monitored through upcoming Q3 results and the 2027 budget finalization process. This report is for informational purposes only and does not include a buy or sell recommendation.
Report written 2026-09-05 · Data as of 2026-09-04
This content is AI analysis of market data and web search results, provided for information only. It is not a solicitation or recommendation to invest. Investment decisions and their consequences are the investor's own responsibility. Data may be delayed or contain errors.