NICE Information Service gathers, evaluates, and sells credit information on individuals and companies. Its business rests on two pillars: a consumer credit bureau (CB) operation covering personal credit scores and identity-protection services such as NICE Jikimi, and a corporate-information operation covering corporate credit grades, technology assessment (TCB), and company-lookup services, all built on the largest credit-information database in the country. In March and April the company published two "corporate value-up plans," setting 2027 revenue and operating-profit goals while pledging to raise the dividend by at least 5% a year, keep a consolidated payout ratio above 35%, and buy back and cancel 1% of its shares annually; in 2025 it delivered a 38.7% payout ratio and canceled 1% of its shares. The strengths are a high-margin, hard-to-enter number-one domestic franchise, a net-cash balance sheet, and shareholder returns that the company has committed to in writing and then honored. The cautions are that results are exposed to the economy, household-credit trends, and regulatory policy, and that part of the net-profit growth comes from non-operating factors such as an acquired subsidiary, so the steadiness of the core margin needs to be checked.
At-a-glance assessment financial health · growth · profitability · valuation
- Debt ratio, current ratio and interest burden all look healthy.
- Revenue rose 12.5% year over year, and the pace is quickening (3-year trend: rising).
- Most recent quarter (Q1 2026) revenue was 9.7% higher than a year earlier.
- Even versus the prior quarter (Q4 2025), revenue was 1.0% lower.
- ROE is 16.6% (controlling-interest basis). It is above the sector average.
- Operating margin is 17.3%.
Ownership & governance As of 2025-12-31
Largest shareholder NICE Holdings 44.31% (corporate)
Controlling bloc incl. related parties 44.31%
With the controlling bloc holding 44%, the ownership structure is stable.
🔎 In-depth analysis
- NICE Information Service gathers and evaluates credit information on individuals and companies and sells that data.
- The business has two main pillars.
- First, a consumer credit bureau (CB) operation that supplies the personal credit scores banks and card issuers use to underwrite loans, along with identity-verification and credit-management services such as NICE Jikimi.
- Second, a corporate-information operation that sells company credit grades, assessment reports for bids and supply contracts, technology assessment (TCB), and company-lookup services.
- Its core competitive edge is holding the largest credit-information database in the country, and it has recently been expanding into MyData and big-data analytics.
- The latest close is ₩13,510 and the market cap is ₩795.9 billion.
- The price sits below the 20-day line (₩13,960) and below the 60-day line (₩14,508).
- Trading below both its short- and medium-term moving averages, the trend is on the soft side.
- The RSI (a gauge that scores upward versus downward momentum over the past 14 days on a 0-100 scale) is 42.4, a neutral level.
- The one-month change is -4.8%, the three-month change is -14.4%, and the position versus the 52-week high is -25.8%.
- Relative strength versus the KOSPI is 19 (1-99, based on the past year's return against the index with recent performance weighted more heavily; higher means stronger than the market).
- That places it in roughly the top 82% of all stocks by strength.
- Over the past three months it lagged the index by 28.5%.
- Chart reading is best done alongside volume and the dates of disclosures.
- On valuation, the P/E (how many times one year's earnings the price represents) is 10.31x and the P/B (how many times book equity the price represents) is 1.72x.
- Profitability is solid.
- ROE (how much is earned in a year on equity) is 16.6% and the operating margin is 17.3%, reflecting the high margins typical of a data business.
- The balance sheet is very stable.
- The debt-to-equity ratio is just 38%, and the company holds more cash than borrowings, a net-cash position (net debt of -₩91.0 billion).
- Metrics that also account for debt are attractive: EV/EBIT (enterprise value divided by operating profit, a P/E-like measure that factors in debt) is 6.9x, lower than the P/E, because the company has piled up cash rather than debt.
- The FCF yield (actual cash generated relative to market cap) is a high 13.6%, so reported profit converts well into real cash.
- The dividend yield is 3.7% (₩510 per share).
- The long-run growth trajectory points up.
- Revenue rose from ₩484.8 billion in 2021 to ₩602.1 billion in 2025, a 5.6% annual average over five years.
- The pace picked up over the past two years in particular, with 2025 revenue up 12.5% year on year.
- Operating profit grew even faster, at a 26% annual average over two years.
- The first quarter of 2026 also looks good: cumulative revenue of ₩156.0 billion (+9.7%), operating profit of ₩29.4 billion (+17.7%), and net profit of ₩25.8 billion (+32.4%), with net profit growing especially fast.
- In an April filing the company set a target of exceeding ₩690.0 billion in revenue and ₩110.0 billion in operating profit in 2027.
- If met, that implies continued earnings growth, leaving room to value the shares more cheaply on forward earnings than the 10.5x P/E now visible.
- The centerpiece is the two "corporate value-up plan" disclosures (March and April).
- The company put its 2027 revenue and operating-profit goals in hard numbers and, as its 2026-2028 shareholder-return policy, pledged to raise the dividend per share by at least 5% a year, keep a consolidated payout ratio above 35%, and buy back and cancel 1% of its shares each year.
- In 2025 it did in fact deliver a 38.7% payout ratio and canceled 1% of its shares.
- In May came a voluntary subsidiary-related disclosure, an IR event, and the filing of the quarterly report.
- A track record of disclosing its own growth targets and shareholder-return commitments, then honoring them, is a defining feature of this company.
- The strengths are clear.
- The country's number-one credit-information business has high barriers to entry, high margins, and profit that converts well into cash.
- With a net-cash position and little debt, the balance sheet is sturdy.
- The company's own written commitments to raise dividends and cancel shares, honored over time, add to the trust.
- Earnings are rising while the share price has been soft for six months, so the burden is not heavy on forward earnings.
- There are cautions too.
- The credit-information business is exposed to the economy and household-credit trends, and as a regulated industry it is sensitive to policy change.
- Part of the reason net profit grew faster than operating profit is non-operating factors such as a recently acquired subsidiary, so the steadiness of the core margin needs to be checked each quarter.
- In sum, this is a company whose strengths are stable cash generation and shareholder returns, and those strengths show best when household credit and data demand hold up.
🔎 Valuation vs peers Undervalued
Compared against domestic B2B information and data services and group holding companies: NICE (the group holding company, which carries a low ROE and a holding-company discount by its nature) and AhnLab (a domestic B2B software and security firm with steady cash generation).
| Peer | P/E | P/B | ROE |
|---|---|---|---|
| NICE | 10.95x | 0.55x | 4.98% |
| AhnLab | 10.99x | 1.60x | 14.53% |
The 10.5x P/E is similar to peers NICE (10.95) and AhnLab (11.11), but ROE at 16.6% is higher than both (5.0% and 14.5%). At the same multiple, the more profitable business is the more attractive one. On top of that, the net-cash structure means EV/EBIT, which factors in debt, is 6.9x, lower than the P/E. With earnings rising visibly, the 10.5x P/E on last year's confirmed profit does not reflect the profit still to come. On this year's earnings, factoring in the first-quarter trend and the company's 2027 growth goals, the shares are trading at an even lower multiple. Taken together with high profitability, cash generation, and shareholder returns, the current price reads as undervalued.
Price history Close · MA20 · MA60
The latest close is ₩13,510 and the market capitalization is ₩795.9 billion. The price sits below its 20-day moving average (₩13,960) and below its 60-day moving average (₩14,508). It is under both its short- and medium-term moving averages, so the trend looks subdued. The RSI (a supplementary indicator that gauges the strength of gains versus losses over the past 14 days on a 0-100 scale) is 42.4, a neutral level. The one-month change is -4.8%, the three-month change is -14.4%, and the position relative to the 52-week high is -25.8%. Relative strength versus the KOSPI is 19 (on a 1-99 scale, converted from returns against the index over the past year with more weight on recent performance; higher means stronger than the market). It is stronger than roughly 18% of all stocks. Over the past three months it lagged the index by 28.5%. Chart interpretation is best done alongside trading volume and the dates on which disclosures occur.
Relative performance stock vs index · start = 100
Excess return vs index · 3M -28.52% / 6M -48.40% / 12M -65.69%
Key metrics vs sector median
Valuation
The P/E of 10.31x is in line with the sector median (11.82x). The P/B of 1.72x is above the sector median (1.38x).
Enterprise value (EV)
EV = market cap + net debt. It reflects cash and debt, so it captures the real cost of the whole business that market cap alone misses; lower multiples are cheaper relative to earnings or sales.
Profitability & financials
Return on equity (ROE) is 16.6%, above the sector average (14.0%). The operating margin is 17.3%. The debt ratio is 38.2%, so the financial structure is stable.
Growth FY2025 · annual report (consolidated)
| Item | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $321.9M | $354.6M | $399.1M | +12.54% ↑ faster |
| Operating profit | $43.3M | $57.5M | $69.2M | +20.28% ↓ slower |
| Net profit | $37.1M | $50.4M | $51.1M | +1.39% ↓ slower |
| 5-year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $321.3M | $318.0M | $321.9M | $354.6M | $399.1M |
| Operating profit | $48.1M | $47.5M | $43.3M | $57.5M | $69.2M |
| Net profit | $36.2M | $34.9M | $37.1M | $50.4M | $51.1M |
| Revenue CAGR | 4-yr avg 5.57% | ||||
Revenue rose 12.5% year over year (2023 ₩485.7 billion → 2024 ₩535.0 billion → 2025 ₩602.1 billion), and the three-year trend is 'rising'. The pace of growth also quickened from the prior year. Operating profit rose 20.3% year over year. The pace of that profit growth is gradually easing. Over the 5 years on record, revenue compound annual growth (CAGR) is 5.6%. The two-year revenue CAGR is 11.3%. In the most recent quarter (Q1 2026), revenue was 9.7% higher than the same period a year earlier. Because quarterly results are relatively even in this industry, revenue also came in 1.0% lower than the prior quarter (Q4 2025), so the recent trend looks soft.
Latest quarterly results Q1 2026 · vs year-ago + prior quarter
Technical indicators
What stands out
- The dividend yield, at 3.8%, is on the high side.
- ROE of 16.6% points to solid profitability.
- Revenue grew 12.5% year over year, a sign of growth.
- The balance sheet is stable in terms of debt and liquidity.
Points to watch
- The figures shown are based on the last annual report as of the writing date, so it is best to review the latest quarterly results and filings alongside them.
Recent news & events searched · sourced
- 2026-04-29UpdateCorporate value-up plan disclosed. Targets exceeding ₩690.0 billion in revenue and ₩110.0 billion in operating profit in 2027. For 2026-2028, announced a policy of raising the dividend by at least 5% a year, keeping a consolidated payout ratio above 35%, and buying back and canceling 1% of shares annually.The company itself lays out, in figures, the direction of medium-term earnings growth and shareholder returns. Dividends and share cancellation are favorable for per-share value. Source
- 2026-05-14EarningsFirst-quarter 2026 report. Cumulative revenue ₩156.0 billion (+9.7%), operating profit ₩29.4 billion (+17.7%), net profit ₩25.8 billion (+32.4%), with profit growth outpacing revenue.Confirms near-term earnings momentum. The high-teens percentage jump in net profit in particular points to full-year earnings improvement. Source
- 2026-05-15IRNotice of an investor-relations (IR) presentation. The company set up a session to explain its business and results to investors.A communication channel for directly confirming the company's business direction and results. Source
- 2026-03-24UpdateInitial disclosure of the corporate value-up plan. Laid out the broad framework of the growth and shareholder-return plan ahead of the April update.Evidence of continuity in the shareholder-return policy. Source
Figure cross-check computed ↔ external
Recent filings
- 2026-05-28Corporate governance report
- 2026-05-22Amended filing
- 2026-05-22Disclosure
- 2026-05-15Disclosure
- 2026-05-14PeriodicQuarterly report
- 2026-04-29Disclosure
- 2026-04-27OwnershipOwnership-change filing
- 2026-04-01OwnershipOwnership-change filing
- 2026-03-24Disclosure
- 2026-03-23Disclosure
- 2026-03-23Shareholders' meeting notice
- 2026-03-20OwnershipOwnership-change filing
📖 Plain-language glossary — expand if you are new to this
- P/E
- How many times a year's net profit the price is worth (lower is cheaper relative to earnings). The P/E here is on trailing (last full-year) results; for companies whose earnings swing fast (memory chips and other cyclicals/high-growth), a forward P/E on this year's expected earnings is more accurate.
- P/B
- Price relative to net assets (equity). Around 1x means it trades near book value; below 1x means below book.
- P/S
- Price relative to a year's revenue — useful for growth companies with thin earnings.
- Net debt / EV
- Net debt = interest-bearing debt − cash. Negative means more cash than debt (net cash). EV (enterprise value) = market cap + net debt, closer to what it would cost to buy the whole business.
- EV/EBIT · EV/EBITDA · EV/Sales
- Enterprise value against operating profit (EBIT), EBITDA, or revenue. Unlike P/E these reflect debt and cash; lower is cheaper relative to earnings power or sales.
- FCF / FCF yield
- Free cash flow = operating cash − capex, the cash actually left over. FCF yield = FCF ÷ market cap; higher means more cash generated per unit of market value.
- Intrinsic value (DCF)
- Future free cash flow (or, for some capex-heavy but profitable names, forecast earnings) discounted to today to estimate per-share value. Because it shifts a lot with the discount-rate and growth assumptions, it is shown as a bear/base/bull range, and the basis and assumptions are disclosed in one line beneath it.
- ROE
- How much profit the company earns in a year on its equity (%). Higher means better returns on capital.
- EPS / BPS
- Earnings per share / net assets (book value) per share.
- Operating / net margin
- Profit left from the core business / final profit after tax and interest, per unit of revenue.
- Debt ratio
- Debt relative to equity (%). Higher means more reliance on borrowing (norms vary by sector).
- Current ratio
- Assets convertible to cash within a year against debt due within a year. Above 100% leaves some short-term headroom.
- Interest coverage
- How many times operating profit covers the interest owed. Below 1x means operating profit alone struggles to cover interest.
- Dividend yield / payout ratio
- The year's dividend as a % of today's price / the share of earnings paid out as dividends.
- Revenue CAGR
- Multi-year growth expressed as a single yearly average (compound annual growth rate).
- RSI (short-term signal)
- Whether recent price action is overheated or beaten down. Above 70 is overbought, below 30 oversold.
- MA20 / MA60 (moving averages)
- The 20- and 60-day average price. Price above them signals a firmer short-term trend.
- vs 52-week high
- How far below the past year's peak the price sits now (%).
All figures are for reference only; how they read varies by sector and over time.
Sources: Korea FSC market-price API (data.go.kr), OpenDART, KRX/KIND — public data only.
Bong Stocks presents public-data-based information for reference only. It is not investment advice and contains no target prices, ratings, or buy/sell recommendations. Verify independently before making any decision.