Daeshin Securities forecasts that Korea Investment Holdings (KOSPI: 071050) will post net profit attributable to controlling shareholders of 783.5 billion won in the second quarter of 2026, the brokerage said on 7 July. That would represent a 14.4% decline from the previous quarter but a 45.4% jump from the same period a year earlier.
The estimate comfortably exceeds the market consensus of 699.5 billion won by 12%. For the full year, Daeshin projects operating profit of 3.279 trillion won — within touching distance of the 3 trillion won threshold that would mark a milestone for the group.
The headline driver is brokerage commissions, which are expected to reach 435.3 billion won in the second quarter, up 38.7% quarter on quarter. Average daily trading volume on the Korean stock market surged 35.5% during the quarter to 90.3 trillion won, providing a powerful tailwind. Korea Investment Securities, the group's flagship brokerage arm, has steadily expanded its market share in equities trading, from 9.3% in June 2021 to 13.3% in March 2026 — a gain of four percentage points. A key structural advantage underpins that growth: only two brokerages in Korea, Korea Investment Securities and Shinhan Securities, offer Direct Market Access (DMA) services to foreign investors, giving both firms a captive and lucrative client base.
Investment banking remains solid. Korea Investment Securities ranked first in the acquisition-financing league tables for the first half of this year, arranging twelve deals worth a combined 1.943 trillion won. However, activity was heavily front-loaded into the first quarter, so second-quarter fee income from that business is expected to ease sequentially.
Trading profit is the main source of weakness, forecast to fall 32.1% quarter on quarter to 350 billion won, dragged down by lower dividend and distribution income and bond-related losses stemming from rising interest rates. On the other hand, the balance of the group's proprietary short-term notes (발행어음) — a high-yield funding instrument unique to a handful of licensed Korean brokerages — continues to grow, and the margin on that business remains above the industry average.
Daeshin maintains a Buy rating and a target price of 335,000 won on the stock, its top pick within the Korean brokerage sector. At its current price of 249,500 won (as of 6 July), the shares trade at 1.12 times forecast book value for 2026, a modest discount to the sector average of 1.22 times — suggesting room for re-rating as earnings momentum is recognised by the market.