- Prev. close
- ₩183,809
- Volume
- 598.8K
- Market cap
- ₩27.5T
Stock and sector context
Tech & Internetoutflow- Sector comparison
- Of 5 covered Tech & Internet stocks in Korean, 4 fell; the average change was -2.88%. NAVER moved in the same direction at -1.80%. Estimated sector flow was outflow.
- Variables to watch
- USD/KRWUS interest ratesCloud demandDigital ad spending
- Risks to check
- -41% below the high, the downtrend may continue
- Tighter platform regulation
- An ad spending slowdown
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 58/100The 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
NAVER scores 58 out of 100 on today's InverseOne match ranking, 5 of 60 in the Korean large-cap universe. The gap to its 52-week high is 68%. Today's move of -1.80% came with money flowing out; the broader Tech & Internet sector flow is worth checking. 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, Tech & Internet
StartupXO news featuring this company
Lending balance
Little change5,965,765 sh
KRW 1.08T
New 150,259 sh, Returned 99,934 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 opinion네이버(주)
- CEO
- 최수연
- Employees
- 5,047
- Average tenure
- 7.7 years
- Average pay per employee
- ₩146M
- Listed
- 2008-11-28
- Founded
- 1999-06-02
- Auditor
- 삼정회계법인
As filed 2026-10-12
Company siteCompany research
Researched 2026-09-21 21:00 KSTRevenue grew by KRW 473.7 billion in the quarter, operating expenses grew by KRW 474.9 billion, and operating profit ended KRW 1.2 billion below a year earlier.
NAVER's consolidated revenue for the second quarter of 2026 was KRW 3,388.8 billion, up 16.2% from a year earlier, while operating profit of KRW 520.3 billion was almost unchanged from KRW 521.6 billion. The operating margin fell from 17.9% to 15.4%. The two cost lines that grew the most were partner costs (up KRW 226.5 billion) and marketing (up KRW 122.5 billion). Net profit rose 41.6% to KRW 704.3 billion, but that came from finance income of KRW 301.5 billion and equity-method gains of KRW 176.4 billion rather than from operations. Capital expenditure of KRW 402.8 billion was 2.5 times the year-earlier figure, and consolidated free cash flow, calculated with the formula the company publishes, came to KRW 46.3 billion.
Key figures
- Q2 revenue
- KRW 3,388.8 billion
- 2026-06-30
- Operating profit
- KRW 520.3 billion
- 2026-06-30
- Operating margin
- 15.4%
- 2026-06-30
- Consolidated net profit
- KRW 704.3 billion
- 2026-06-30
- Capital expenditure
- KRW 402.8 billion
- 2026-06-30
- Consolidated free cash flow
- KRW 46.3 billion
- 2026-06-30
Four cost lines absorbed the whole revenue increase
Consolidated revenue for the second quarter of 2026 was KRW 3,388.8 billion, KRW 473.7 billion more than the KRW 2,915.1 billion of the same quarter a year earlier. Over the same period operating expenses rose from KRW 2,393.5 billion to KRW 2,868.4 billion, an increase of KRW 474.9 billion. Costs grew KRW 1.2 billion more than revenue did, so operating profit went from KRW 521.6 billion to KRW 520.3 billion. By the lines the company reports, partner costs rose from KRW 1,030.2 billion to KRW 1,256.8 billion (up KRW 226.5 billion), marketing from KRW 482.4 billion to KRW 604.9 billion (up KRW 122.5 billion), development and operations from KRW 683.1 billion to KRW 786.9 billion (up KRW 103.8 billion), and infrastructure from KRW 197.7 billion to KRW 219.8 billion (up KRW 22.1 billion). The four increases add up to KRW 474.9 billion. Marketing was also up 18.2% against the previous quarter's KRW 511.7 billion, the largest quarter-on-quarter increase of the four. The 15.4% operating margin is the second-lowest of the fourteen quarters in the factsheet, above only the 14.5% of the first quarter of 2023.
Q2 2026 increase in operating expenses versus a year earlier (KRW 100 million)
Where the KRW 3,388.8 billion came from: three segments, six lines
The company splits revenue into three segments: NAVER Platform, Financial Platform, and Global Challenge. NAVER Platform revenue was KRW 1,902.2 billion, up 12.3%, made up of advertising at KRW 1,447.2 billion (up 7.5%) and services at KRW 455.0 billion (up 31.3%). Advertising alone is 42.7% of total revenue. Financial Platform revenue was KRW 470.7 billion, up 16.0%. Global Challenge revenue was KRW 1,015.9 billion, up 24.4%; within it, C2C rose 74.9% from KRW 227.5 billion to KRW 397.9 billion, while content grew only 0.5% from KRW 462.1 billion to KRW 464.3 billion. Enterprise revenue was KRW 153.7 billion, up 21.3%. Broken down by line, the KRW 473.7 billion year-on-year increase consists of C2C KRW 170.4 billion, services KRW 108.4 billion, advertising KRW 100.6 billion, Financial Platform KRW 65.1 billion, enterprise KRW 27.0 billion, and content KRW 2.2 billion. In this quarter the fastest-growing line, C2C, contributed more to the increase than the largest line, advertising. C2C has grown for four consecutive quarters: KRW 250.6 billion in the third quarter of 2025, KRW 285.7 billion in the fourth, and KRW 351.1 billion in the first quarter of 2026.
Q2 2026 revenue mix (KRW 100 million)
- Advertising14472
- Financial Platform4707
- Content4643
- Services4550
- C2C3979
- Enterprise1537
The KRW 381.7 billion between operating profit and net profit
Consolidated net profit for the quarter was KRW 704.3 billion, up 41.6% from KRW 497.4 billion a year earlier. Operating profit was flat, so the difference arose below the operating line. Non-operating income was KRW 569.3 billion: finance income of KRW 301.5 billion, equity-method gains of KRW 176.4 billion, and other income of KRW 91.5 billion. Non-operating expenses were KRW 187.6 billion, consisting of finance costs of KRW 147.9 billion, other losses of KRW 102.0 billion, and an equity-method loss line showing minus KRW 62.2 billion. Non-operating income less non-operating expenses, KRW 381.7 billion, was added to operating profit for a pre-tax profit of KRW 902.0 billion, and after income tax expense of KRW 197.8 billion the net figure is KRW 704.3 billion. In the same quarter a year earlier, non-operating income was KRW 433.9 billion and non-operating expenses KRW 271.9 billion. Net profit attributable to owners of the parent was KRW 698.6 billion. Below the income statement, other comprehensive income swung from plus KRW 2,044.7 billion in the first quarter to minus KRW 624.4 billion in the second, leaving total comprehensive income for the quarter at KRW 79.9 billion.
Capital expenditure of KRW 402.8 billion, free cash flow of KRW 46.3 billion
The factsheet states its free cash flow formula: adjusted EBITDA less capital expenditure less income taxes paid. For the quarter, adjusted EBITDA of KRW 753.1 billion less capital expenditure of KRW 402.8 billion and taxes paid of KRW 304.0 billion leaves KRW 46.3 billion. A year earlier the same calculation was adjusted EBITDA of KRW 684.8 billion, capital expenditure of KRW 162.8 billion, and taxes paid of KRW 325.2 billion, leaving KRW 196.8 billion; in the first quarter of 2026 it was KRW 775.5 billion, KRW 451.3 billion, and KRW 4.4 billion, leaving KRW 319.8 billion. Quarterly capital expenditure ran KRW 162.8 billion in the second quarter of 2025, KRW 389.5 billion in the third, KRW 560.1 billion in the fourth, KRW 451.3 billion in the first quarter of 2026, and KRW 402.8 billion in the second. The last four quarters total KRW 1,803.7 billion, 2.4 times the KRW 752.9 billion of the four quarters before that. The balance sheet points the same way. Over twelve months, property, plant and equipment rose from KRW 3,052.7 billion to KRW 4,122.7 billion, right-of-use assets from KRW 526.1 billion to KRW 1,031.8 billion, and intangible assets from KRW 3,476.5 billion to KRW 4,661.7 billion. Cash and cash equivalents stood at KRW 8,401.4 billion. Bonds outstanding, current and non-current combined, were KRW 1,919.0 billion at the end of the second quarter of 2025, fell to KRW 388.2 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2026, and returned to KRW 2,020.8 billion at the end of the second quarter.
Capital expenditure by quarter (KRW 100 million, CapEx line of the factsheet FCF formula)
What to keep in mind when reading these numbers
The figures in this article are taken from the consolidated income statement and balance sheet in the second-quarter 2026 factsheet the company posted in its earnings release archive. The factsheet is in billions of won with decimals; the figures here are rounded to one decimal place, so line items may differ from their totals by KRW 0.1 billion. A footnote in the factsheet says the adjusted EBITDA used in the free cash flow formula includes, in addition to depreciation, amortization, and stock-based compensation, items such as non-cash retirement benefits and bad-debt expense. It is not the same as cash flow from operating activities under the accounting standards. Items below operating profit move a lot from quarter to quarter: in the fourth quarter of 2025, non-operating expenses were KRW 780.7 billion (other losses KRW 515.2 billion) and net profit was KRW 163.0 billion. Reading the company from a single quarter's net profit means reading that quarter's non-operating items. The earnings presentation and webcast are in the same archive; this article covers only the factsheet tables.
Operating margin by quarter (%)
Common questions
- Why did NAVER's operating profit not grow with revenue in the second quarter of 2026?
- Because operating expenses grew more than revenue. Revenue rose KRW 473.7 billion to KRW 3,388.8 billion, while operating expenses rose KRW 474.9 billion to KRW 2,868.4 billion, so operating profit of KRW 520.3 billion was KRW 1.2 billion below a year earlier. The added costs were partner costs KRW 226.5 billion, marketing KRW 122.5 billion, development and operations KRW 103.8 billion, and infrastructure KRW 22.1 billion.
- Why is NAVER's net profit of KRW 704.3 billion larger than its operating profit of KRW 520.3 billion?
- Because non-operating income exceeded non-operating expenses by KRW 381.7 billion. Finance income of KRW 301.5 billion, equity-method gains of KRW 176.4 billion, and other income of KRW 91.5 billion came in, against non-operating expenses of KRW 187.6 billion. Pre-tax profit of KRW 902.0 billion less income tax expense of KRW 197.8 billion gives net profit of KRW 704.3 billion.
- How much were NAVER's capital expenditure and free cash flow in the second quarter of 2026?
- Capital expenditure was KRW 402.8 billion, and consolidated free cash flow under the formula stated in the company's factsheet was KRW 46.3 billion. That is adjusted EBITDA of KRW 753.1 billion less capital expenditure of KRW 402.8 billion and income taxes paid of KRW 304.0 billion. In the same quarter a year earlier, capital expenditure was KRW 162.8 billion and free cash flow KRW 196.8 billion.
Sources
- 1.Q2 2026 Earnings Release Factsheet (consolidated income statement and balance sheet) NAVER IR, as of 2026-06-30
- 2.IR archive, earnings releases (Q2 2026 NAVER earnings release) NAVER IR, as of 2026-06-30
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 (1).
- It is 68% below its 52-week high.
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