- Prev. close
- ₩106,797
- Volume
- 1.4M
- Market cap
- ₩42.2T
Stock and sector context
Autosoutflow- Sector comparison
- Kia changed +1.22%, compared with an average of -0.47% for the 3 covered Autos stocks in Korean.
- Variables to watch
- USD/KRWEV demandTariffsRaw material prices
- Risks to check
- -49% below the high, the downtrend may continue
- Tariff burden
- Slowing EV demand
This compares price changes among covered stocks in the same market. It does not establish why prices moved. Variables and risks are sector reference lists.
Why a candidate
Match 75/100The match score marks how many conditions overlap on a 0 to 100 scale: the 52-week range, valuation metrics, price change and volume. It is not a probability of rising or a forecast return.
Today's read
Kia scores 75 out of 100 on today's InverseOne match ranking, 1 of 60 in the Korean large-cap universe. The gap to its 52-week high is 97%. Today's move of +1.22% came with money flowing in, alongside the Autos sector. Scores are estimates built from price and volume, a starting point for research rather than a trading signal.
Data basis: 2026-10-12 close, 10-14 00:20 KST updated, For reference only, not advice
Same-sector stocks, Autos
Lending balance
Unwinding6,407,182 sh
KRW 0.69T
New 27,044 sh, Returned 188,292 sh
Shares borrowed through securities lending that have not yet been returned. Borrowed shares are often sold afterwards, so the balance is used as a reference for pending sell pressure.
As of 2026-10-12, FSC stock lending data
Company profile
Unqualified opinion기아(주)
- CEO
- 송호성, 송민수(각자 대표이사)
- Employees
- 36,566
- Average tenure
- 20.8 years
- Average pay per employee
- ₩134M
- Listed
- 1973-07-21
- Founded
- 1944-12-10
- Auditor
- 한영회계법인
As filed 2026-10-12
Company siteCompany research
Researched 2026-09-14 07:54 KSTThe KRW 652.4bn rise in Kia's first-half warranty expense equals 69 percent of the KRW 939.7bn fall in operating profit over the same period.
Kia builds and sells passenger cars, RVs and commercial vehicles, and 35.9 percent of its KRW 62.54tn in net revenue for the first half of 2026 was booked by its US sales subsidiary, Kia America. Second-quarter revenue rose 12.6 percent from a year earlier to KRW 33.04tn, but operating profit fell 4.9 percent to KRW 2.63tn and the operating margin slipped from 9.4 to 8.0 percent. The SG&A breakdown puts first-half warranty expense at KRW 2,105.7bn, 44.9 percent more than the KRW 1,453.3bn of a year earlier. In its half-year report the company listed US tariffs, higher incentives mainly in overseas markets, and the revaluation of foreign-currency warranty provisions after a sharp rise in the period-end won-dollar rate among the reasons first-half operating profit fell.
Key figures
- Q2 revenue
- KRW 33.04tn
- 2026-06-30
- Q2 operating profit
- KRW 2.63tn
- 2026-06-30
- Q2 operating margin
- 8.0%
- 2026-06-30
- H1 warranty expense
- KRW 2,105.7bn
- 2026-06-30
- H1 plant utilization
- 97.7%
- 2026-06-30
- Sales, January to August
- 2,196,123 vehicles
- 2026-08-31
The reasons Kia put at the top of its half-year report
Kia's half-year report sums up the first half in a single paragraph of its business overview. Revenue rose 9.0 percent from a year earlier to KRW 62.54tn, which the company put down to more consolidated vehicle sales and a higher average selling price as hybrid and EV sales grew, mainly in developed markets. Operating profit fell 16.3 percent to KRW 4.83tn, and the operating margin dropped 2.4 percentage points to 7.7 percent. For the fall, the company cited US tariffs, higher incentives mainly in overseas markets, and the revaluation of foreign-currency warranty provisions after the period-end won-dollar rate jumped, among other factors. That paragraph puts no amount on any of them. Split by quarter, operating profit rose 19.2 percent from KRW 2.21tn in the first quarter to KRW 2.63tn in the second, still short of the KRW 2.76tn earned in the second quarter of 2025.
Quarterly operating profit (KRW bn)
Cost of sales rose almost as much as revenue
Taken on its own, the second quarter brought revenue of KRW 33.04tn, KRW 3.69tn more than a year earlier. Cost of sales rose KRW 3.52tn over the same period, an amount equal to 95.5 percent of the revenue increase. The cost of sales ratio went from 80.0 to 81.7 percent, and gross profit grew by only KRW 167.4bn. SG&A rose KRW 303.7bn, with selling expenses up KRW 335.2bn and administrative expenses down KRW 31.5bn. Because SG&A grew by more than gross profit, operating profit fell KRW 136.2bn. Below the operating line things moved the other way. The share of profit from joint ventures and associates rose KRW 79.0bn, and other gains and losses swung from a KRW 110.0bn loss a year earlier to a KRW 38.5bn gain. Net profit rose 2.6 percent to KRW 2.33tn.
Warranty expense made up 78.6 percent of the rise in SG&A
First-half SG&A came to KRW 7,013.2bn, up KRW 830.4bn from a year earlier. Within that, warranty expense rose KRW 652.4bn, from KRW 1,453.3bn to KRW 2,105.7bn. Advertising expense rose KRW 132.8bn over the same period, while testing expense fell KRW 61.7bn. Subtracting the second quarter's KRW 905.2bn from the half-year total puts first-quarter warranty expense at KRW 1,200.5bn. A year earlier the figures were KRW 754.2bn for the first quarter and KRW 699.0bn for the second. Kia says it sets up a warranty provision at the point of sale to cover repairs, part replacements and compensation for defects in exported vehicles. That provision stood at KRW 9,289.2bn at the end of June, up from KRW 8,551.2bn at the start of the year. Neither the business overview nor the provisions note gives the size of the foreign-currency revaluation the company listed as a reason for lower profit.
Warranty expense by quarter (KRW bn)
Europe grew fastest, by 15.1 percent
Because rental and maintenance make up only a small share of revenue, Kia reports a single business segment and breaks revenue down by region instead. Its US sales subsidiary, Kia America (KUS), was the largest contributor to first-half net revenue at KRW 22.44tn. Korea followed with KRW 15.91tn and Europe with KRW 14.55tn, then other regions with KRW 5.02tn and North and Central America excluding Kia America with KRW 4.63tn. Against a year earlier, Europe grew fastest at 15.1 percent, Kia America grew 7.7 percent and Korea 5.3 percent. No single external customer accounted for 10 percent or more of revenue. For North America, the company says it plans to add a Sportage hybrid at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA) and to launch a Seltos hybrid. In Europe it plans to sell more locally built EVs such as the EV2 and the EV4 hatchback and to launch a seven-seat PV5 passenger van.
Net revenue by region, H1 2026 (KRW tn)
- Korea15.9
- Kia America (KUS)22.4
- Europe14.5
- Other regions5.0
- Other North and Central America4.6
Korean plants ran at 103.5 percent, the Slovak plant at 82.6
First-half capacity was 1,528,000 vehicles and output 1,492,487, a utilization rate of 97.7 percent. The gap between plants is wide. The Korean plants built 842,584 vehicles against capacity of 814,000, a rate of 103.5 percent, and the Korean figures include Donghee Auto's Seosan plant, which builds the Morning and other models for Kia under contract. The US plant ran at 99.6 percent, India at 94.5 percent and Mexico at 87.6 percent, with Slovakia lowest at 82.6 percent. Kia expects facility investment of KRW 4.37tn this year, excluding R&D, and KRW 1.34tn had been invested by the end of June. Figures after June come from the monthly sales filings. The 1 September filing puts January to August sales at 2,196,123 vehicles, 4.4 percent more than a year earlier. In August alone, overseas sales rose 7.4 percent while domestic sales fell 7.6 percent.
Plant utilization, H1 2026
- Korea103.5%
- US99.6%
- India94.5%
- Mexico87.6%
- Slovakia82.6%
Common questions
- What reasons did Kia give in its half-year report for the fall in first-half operating profit?
- US tariffs, higher incentives mainly in overseas markets, and the revaluation of foreign-currency warranty provisions after a sharp rise in the period-end won-dollar rate, among other factors. First-half operating profit fell 16.3 percent to KRW 4.83tn, and the paragraph that lists these reasons puts no amount on any of them.
- What is warranty expense at Kia, and how large was it in the first half of 2026?
- It came to KRW 2,105.7bn, KRW 652.4bn more than a year earlier, an increase equal to 69 percent of the KRW 939.7bn fall in operating profit over the same period. Kia sets up a warranty provision at the point of sale to cover repairs, part replacements and compensation for defects in exported vehicles, and that provision stood at KRW 9,289.2bn at the end of June.
- Were Kia's August sales up on a year earlier?
- Yes. The 1 September filing puts August sales at 266,675 vehicles, 5.0 percent more than the 253,943 of August 2025. Overseas sales rose 7.4 percent to 225,413 and domestic sales fell 7.6 percent to 40,213. The filing notes that the figures are provisional and may differ from the final numbers.
Sources
- 1.Kia half year report (June 2026) DART, Financial Supervisory Service, as of 2026-08-14
- 2.Provisional consolidated operating results, fair disclosure DART, Financial Supervisory Service, as of 2026-07-24
- 3.Provisional operating results, fair disclosure (August 2026 sales) DART, Financial Supervisory Service, as of 2026-09-01
Reference information compiled from public material. Not investment advice; decisions and their consequences rest with the investor.
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Today's talking points
- It sits low in its 52-week range (7).
- Borrowed shares are coming back. The lending balance is shrinking.
- It is 97% below its 52-week high.
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