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
Hands Corporation posted its first quarterly operating profit in five quarters in Q2 2026, but the KRX listing eligibility review triggered by its audit opinion issue and the rapid erosion of its equity base remain unresolved overhangs.
Q2 2026 operating profit turned positive at about KRW 9.5bn, with net profit near breakeven
Owners' equity fell from about KRW 281bn at end-2023 to about KRW 93bn at end-2025, while the debt ratio rose to 726.2%
Trading has been suspended since late March 2026 after an audit opinion disclaimer for FY2025; a re-audit resolved the formal cause, but a listing eligibility review is reportedly still underway
The controlling shareholder and related parties have taken part in debt-to-equity conversions and third-party share placements to shore up capital
Domestic No.1 and roughly top-6 global aluminum wheel maker supplying Hyundai-Kia, Renault-Nissan and GM groups
Hands Corporation is a components maker that supplies aluminum wheels for automobiles to OEM customers.
The company was founded in 1972 as Donghwa Plywood and started out in the timber business before shifting into aluminum wheel manufacturing in 1984, and it now mainly supplies automotive aluminum wheels to vehicle makers on an OEM basis.
It supplies products on an OEM basis to the Hyundai-Kia group, the Renault-Nissan group and the GM group, and with annual production capacity of about 15.5 million units it ranks No.1 domestically and roughly among the top six globally.
Through its subsidiary Hands Six, the company produces large-inch and premium wheels and eco-friendly wheels using PVD coating, and it also provides technology and equipment to manufacturers in emerging markets.
Its production base is centered on a domestic plant in Incheon along with an overseas plant in Tangier, Morocco, where the second phase of construction at the Tangier, Morocco plant was completed at the end of December 2022, leaving no further large-scale capital spending scheduled at that time.
A fire is also part of the company's history, as the Incheon Plant No.2, which was halted by the fire, accounted for about 25% of revenue at the time, at KRW 144.5bn.
The company listed on the KOSPI in December 2016, and as of the end of the third quarter of 2025 the largest shareholder was Chairman and CEO Seung Hyun-chang himself with about a 41.42% stake, rising to about 61.07% including related parties.
Because of its OEM supply structure, revenue is directly tied to customers' production and purchasing policies as well as the broader auto sales cycle.
More recently, sales have increased on expanded OEM supply to major customers including the Hyundai-Kia, Renault-Nissan and GM groups, and the company has been expanding capacity for premium-spec products in response to rising demand for large-inch wheels centered on luxury vehicles and SUVs.
| Quarter | Revenue | Operating profit | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025Q2 | ₩208.5B | -₩8.3B | −4.0% |
| 2025Q3 | ₩179.3B | -₩20.3B | −11.3% |
| 2025Q4 | ₩185.1B | -₩10.5B | −5.6% |
| 2026Q1 | ₩180.6B | -₩9.1B | −5.0% |
| 2026Q2 | ₩156.8B | ₩9.5B | 6.1% |
| Year | Revenue | Operating profit | Net income (parent) | Op. margin | ROE | Debt-to-equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | ₩778.3B | -₩66.7B | -₩77.8B | −8.6% | −40.0% | 343.0% |
| 2023 | ₩749.5B | -₩21.5B | -₩33.9B | −2.9% | −12.1% | 247.1% |
| 2024 | ₩764.4B | -₩46.5B | -₩121.5B | −6.1% | −71.5% | 420.8% |
| 2025 | ₩784.8B | -₩38.7B | -₩88.8B | −4.9% | −95.0% | 726.2% |
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
Consolidated revenue rose modestly to KRW 784.75bn in 2025 from KRW 764.44bn in 2024 and KRW 749.50bn in 2023, but the operating loss came in at KRW 38.74bn, extending a run of losses.
The net loss attributable to owners narrowed from KRW 77.80bn in 2022 to KRW 33.91bn in 2023 before widening again to KRW 121.52bn in 2024 and KRW 88.76bn in 2025.
Over the same period, owners' equity fell sharply for three straight years, from about KRW 280.70bn at end-2023 to about KRW 169.94bn at end-2024 and about KRW 93.41bn at end-2025, while the debt ratio surged from 247.1% to 420.8% and then to 726.2%.
Cash flow from operations, however, stayed positive throughout — KRW 2.43bn in 2022, KRW 57.36bn in 2023, KRW 22.88bn in 2024 and KRW 41.54bn in 2025 — even as the income statement showed losses.
On a quarterly basis, the operating loss was KRW 20.26bn and the net loss KRW 33.04bn in Q3 2025, and both losses widened further in Q4 2025 to an operating loss of KRW 10.46bn and a net loss of KRW 55.21bn.
In Q1 2026 the operating loss narrowed to KRW 9.05bn, but the net loss remained large at KRW 32.25bn, suggesting factors beyond the operating line weighed more heavily on the bottom line.
In Q2 2026, revenue was KRW 156.78bn and operating profit turned positive at KRW 9.52bn for the first time in five quarters, with the net profit attributable to owners near breakeven at about KRW 23 million.
Even so, summing the most recent four quarters from Q3 2025 through Q2 2026 still shows a cumulative operating loss of roughly KRW 30.25bn and a net loss of about KRW 120.47bn, so whether the single-quarter swing to profit becomes a sustained recovery will need to be confirmed in coming quarters.
The aluminum wheel industry is a classically cyclical auto-parts segment closely tied to vehicle production volumes, with results heavily influenced by aluminum prices, shipping costs and currency swings.
Across the domestic auto-parts sector more broadly, a global economic slowdown and uncertainty around the shift to electric vehicles appear to have had an impact, and as demand volatility for finished vehicles weighed on earnings expectations for parts suppliers, consumer attention also cooled.
Brand-reputation surveys of listed domestic auto-parts companies likewise showed that the slowdown was even more pronounced in the details, with brand-consumption metrics down 26.22% and brand-issue, brand-communication and brand-market indicators all falling together.
Hands Corporation holds a domestic No.1 and roughly top-six global position in aluminum wheel production capacity, but weak operating performance and intensifying competition from Chinese products have been cited as pressuring profitability.
As automakers increase their mix of premium vehicles and SUVs, demand for large-inch and premium-spec wheels is rising, which is viewed as an opportunity for parts makers to shift toward a higher value-added product mix.
On the other hand, the auto-parts sector's heavy reliance on OEM supply to vehicle makers limits pricing power, creating a structural constraint on fully passing through rising costs.
Credit rating agencies have also downgraded Hands Corporation's credit rating outlook citing slow recovery in profit-generating capacity and an excessive debt burden, highlighting a widening gap in financial resilience even within the sector.
In recent media interviews, company officials explained that the reasons the losses persisted were a combination of internal and external factors — while external factors are hard to control, the company has received some price compensation through negotiations with customers, and internally it has continued company-wide cost-cutting efforts such as production efficiency improvements and workforce adjustments.
To improve its capital structure, the company held an extraordinary general meeting on June 4, 2026, increasing its authorized share count from 50 million to 100 million shares and adding a new article-of-incorporation clause enabling creditor debt-to-equity conversions.
Following that, a debt-to-equity conversion worth about KRW 17.1bn was carried out on June 9, in which three creditors — Chairman and CEO Seung Hyun-chang, affiliate Donghwa Sanghyup, and related party Cha Hee-sun — converted bonds they held into shares.
The company subsequently held a board meeting and resolved to issue 1,020,403 common shares at KRW 3,492 per share via third-party placement, with the roughly KRW 3.56bn raised earmarked entirely for purchasing aluminum ingot raw materials.
That said, most of this capital-raising has involved the controlling shareholder and related parties, so future changes in ownership structure and dilution warrant continued attention.
On the listing front, reporting indicates that the episode triggered by the external auditor's opinion disclaimer moved past the formal delisting risk after a re-audit produced an unqualified opinion, but the possibility of removal cannot be ruled out if the company fails to clear the second hurdle of the KRX's listing eligibility review.
On the operating side, the company continues to expand capacity for premium-spec products to meet demand for large-inch wheels tied to luxury vehicles and SUVs, making the pace of margin recovery through an improved product mix a key point to watch.
The company is reportedly undergoing a KRX listing eligibility review stemming from its FY2025 audit opinion issue, and it should be kept in mind that market-derived pricing indicators are being generated under conditions that differ from a normal trading environment.
On an in-house basis, the price-to-book ratio sits at a substantial discount to net asset value, reflecting the sharp shrinkage in owners' equity and the accumulation of losses seen in recent years.
Given that operating losses persisted for several years before the first swing to an operating profit in Q2 2026, how the valuation evolves going forward may hinge on whether that turn to profit proves to be a one-off or the start of a trend.
On dividends, there has been no payout in recent years, leaving improvement in the capital structure and normalization of earnings as priorities ahead of shareholder returns through dividends.
With debt-to-equity conversions and third-party share placements involving the controlling shareholder and related parties continuing, future changes in the share count could keep affecting how per-share metrics should be read.
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
In Q2 2026, revenue reached KRW 156.78bn and operating profit turned positive at KRW 9.52bn, reversing the string of operating losses that had run since Q3 2025.
Net profit attributable to owners was also near breakeven at about KRW 23 million, suggesting some effect from cost cuts and price negotiations with customers. Whether this pattern continues into the next quarter is a key point to watch.
While the income statement showed losses for several straight years, cash flow from operations stayed positive every year from 2022 through 2025, reaching KRW 41.54bn in 2025 and KRW 57.36bn in 2023.
This suggests non-cash items such as depreciation play a large role, and the core cash-generating capability has not been fully impaired.
Chairman Seung Hyun-chang and affiliated related parties have directly participated in debt-to-equity conversions and third-party share placements to improve the capital structure.
In June 2026, this included a roughly KRW 17.1bn debt-to-equity conversion and an additional capital raise for aluminum raw-material purchases. This structure, in which owner capital is being injected, can be read as a sign of willingness to address the liquidity situation.
Owners' equity fell from about KRW 280.70bn at end-2023 to about KRW 93.41bn at end-2025 — roughly a third of its prior level in three years — while the debt ratio jumped from 247.1% to 726.2% over the same period. This indicates that accumulated net losses have been eroding the capital base at a fast pace.
A delisting cause arose from the opinion disclaimer on the FY2025 audit, and trading in the stock has been suspended since March 23, 2026.
A re-audit resolved the formal cause, but reporting indicates a process is under way in which removal cannot be ruled out if the company fails to clear the KRX's listing eligibility review, described as the second hurdle.
Since the timing of any trading resumption and even continued listing itself may hinge on the review outcome, investors face an ongoing burden of tracking related disclosures.
In Q1 2026, consolidated financial expenses rose 49.2% year-over-year to KRW 23.4bn, while financial income over the same period fell 65.3%.
This financial-cost burden is part of why the net loss stayed large even as the operating loss narrowed, and short-term borrowings alone reached KRW 430.5bn, adding to the financial strain.
A KRX listing eligibility review reportedly remains in progress, and the outcome of a corporate examination committee's deliberation will determine whether the trading suspension continues and whether the listing is maintained.
The auditor has stated in its audit report that uncertainty exists regarding the company's ability to continue as a going concern, so future audit-opinion trends need to be monitored closely.
The company is experiencing shrinking equity and a surging debt ratio simultaneously, and with short-term borrowings at about KRW 430.5bn, repayment and refinancing burdens persist.
A capital-raising structure that relies on debt-to-equity conversions and third-party placements involving the controlling shareholder and related parties could lead to further dilution and governance-related issues.
Earnings are directly exposed to swings in the vehicle production cycle and to demand volatility during the shift to electric vehicles, and intensifying competition from Chinese products weighs on profitability.
Volatility in cost drivers such as aluminum prices, shipping rates and currency movements also remains a persistent risk.
Check whether the Q2 2026 swing to an operating profit continues into Q3, tracking revenue and margin trends.
Monitor the outcome of the corporate examination committee's review related to the listing eligibility process and whether the trading suspension is lifted.
Whether the audit opinion normalizes on the going-concern question is a key variable for continued listing.
Watch for additional debt-to-equity conversions or third-party placements involving the controlling shareholder and related parties, and any resulting changes in share count or ownership structure.
Hands Corporation posted its first operating profit in five quarters in Q2 2026, showing some payoff from cost cuts and price negotiations with customers.
However, this profit came in a single quarter that still sits within a four-quarter window carrying large cumulative operating and net losses, making it premature to call it a sustained recovery.
More fundamentally, the pace of equity erosion has been rapid, with owners' equity shrinking to about a third of its late-2023 level and the debt ratio topping 700%.
On top of that, while the delisting cause triggered by the FY2025 audit opinion disclaimer was resolved through a re-audit, reporting indicates a new listing eligibility review process is under way, meaning uncertainty over continued listing has not been fully cleared.
The controlling shareholder and related parties directly participating in debt-to-equity conversions and capital raises is a positive, but it also leaves further dilution and governance changes as variables to watch.
On balance, the company retains its business foundation as an OEM auto-parts supplier, but confirming both a normalized capital structure and resolution of listing risk will be necessary before the durability of any earnings improvement can be assessed.
Report written 2026-09-05 · Data as of 2026-09-04
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