LG Display (034220) 🔎 In-depth
KOSPI · Price as of 2026-08-06 · Updated 2026-08-09
LG Display makes display panels for smartphones, TVs, laptops and tablets and sells them to finished-product makers. Its business splits into small OLED for smartphones and watches, mid-size tandem OLED and high-value LCD, and large white OLED for TVs; it is winding down low-margin large LCD and shifting its center of gravity to higher-margin OLED, so the OLED share of revenue rose from the mid-50% range in 2024 to the low-60% range in 2025. It confirmed an operating-profit turnaround in Q1 2026 (+338% year on year), returning to the black for the first time in four years, and in early June continued its financial management with a decision to guarantee debt to fund a subsidiary. What stands out lately is a two-sided picture: strengths include the OLED shift showing up in results so that profit rises even as revenue falls, and a favorable backdrop from an Apple-premium OLED oligopoly and wider adoption in tablets and laptops, while the caution is a heavy balance sheet (a 407.6% debt ratio and a 0.45 interest coverage ratio) that can produce a net loss even with an operating profit, so whether the recovery reaches net profit needs to be verified in the quarterly numbers.
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30-second brief
Pulled directly from the computed values below — not a separately written opinion.
What do the SourceComputedEstimateReading tags mean?
Source filings and exchange data · Computed calculated from public data · Estimate our own unverified projection · Reading drafted automatically, then rule-checked. See AI & Automation.
Core valuation metric
This stock's effective sub-sector is “Electronic Components” (Semiconductors & IT Components), a type typically read first through forward P/E.
Electronic components swing with set-makers' product launches and demand cycles, so what lies ahead matters more than earnings already booked. That makes forward P/E — pricing the shares against expected earnings — the first metric to read.
Price against earnings alone becomes unstable when earnings swing. Reading it together with price against assets helps gauge the downside.
This note explains how each sector is typically valued and is educational context only, not investment advice.
At-a-glance assessment financial health · growth · profitability · valuation
- Debt far exceeds equity (debt ratio 302.2%).
- Assets that can be turned to cash within a year fall short of near-term liabilities (current ratio 73.6%).
- Operating profit barely covers the interest bill (interest coverage below 1x).
- Revenue fell 3.0% year over year (3-year trend: mixed).
- Net profit swung from a loss a year earlier back into the black (a turnaround).
- Most recent quarter (Q1 2026) revenue was 8.8% lower than a year earlier.
- ROE is 3.4% (controlling-interest basis). It is above the sector average.
- Operating margin is 2.5%.
- A sector-metric and in-depth research verdict — see “Valuation vs peers” below for the basis.
Ownership & governance As of 2025-12-31
Largest shareholder LG Electronics 36.72% (corporate)
Controlling bloc incl. related parties 36.72%
With the controlling bloc holding 37%, the ownership structure is stable.
🔎 In-depth analysis Reading
LG Display makes the display panels that go into smartphones, TVs, laptops and tablets and sells them to finished-product makers. The business splits broadly into three. The small segment is OLED for smartphones and watches (screens that emit their own light, making them thin and sharp), supplied to premium devices including Apple's; the mid-size segment is tandem OLED and high-value LCD for tablets and laptops; and the large segment is large-screen OLED for TVs and monitors (white OLED). The low-margin large LCD that once propped up revenue (such as the Guangzhou plant in China) is being wound down, while the center of gravity shifts to higher-margin OLED. As a result the OLED share of total revenue rose from the mid-50% range in 2024 to the low-60% range in 2025, and the company has made continually raising this share a core strategy. The fact that OLED for Apple's premium devices is effectively supplied by two Korean companies (LG Display and Samsung Display) in an oligopoly underpins this company's demand base.
The latest close is ₩9,560 and the market capitalization is ₩4.8 trillion. The price sits below its 20-day moving average (₩9,829) and below its 60-day moving average (₩12,211). 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 -12.1%, the three-month change is -25.1%, and the position relative to the 52-week high is -42.7%. Relative strength versus the KOSPI is 15 (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 14% of all stocks. Over the past three months it lagged the index by 8.7%. Chart interpretation is best done alongside trading volume and the dates on which disclosures occur.
The valuation metrics tell different stories. The P/E ratio (how many times one year's net profit the share price represents) is 21.12x, which looks high, but this is divided by the small net profit that only just turned positive in 2025 (₩226.3 billion), a figure that swings sharply on even small changes in earnings. By contrast the P/B (how many times the company's net assets) is 0.74x, trading below book equity, and the P/S (how many times revenue) is 0.21x, very low. Profitability is still at the early stage of recovery, with ROE (how much is earned in a year on equity) at 3.4% and an operating margin of 2.0%. The point most worth caution is the financial structure. The debt ratio (borrowings relative to equity) is very high at 407.6%, the interest coverage ratio (how many times operating profit can pay interest) is 0.45, below 1, and the current ratio (assets convertible to cash against debt due within a year) is 72.8%, below 100%. In other words, the interest burden is larger than the money earned from operations, a structure in which even better operations struggle to leave a full net profit.
The five-year path reveals this to be a typical cyclical, economically sensitive industry. After peaking at ₩2.2306 trillion in operating profit in 2021, LCD oversupply and slowing demand led to operating losses of -₩2.0851 trillion in 2022, -₩2.5102 trillion in 2023 and -₩560.6 billion in 2024. Then, as intense restructuring combined with the OLED shift, 2025 turned to the black for the first time in four years with operating profit of ₩517.0 billion and net profit of ₩226.3 billion. In Q1 2026 it kept the profitable tone with revenue of ₩5.534 trillion (-8.8% year on year), operating profit of ₩146.7 billion (+338% year on year) and EBITDA (operating cash-generating power before depreciation) of ₩1.141 trillion, and the OLED revenue share rose to about 60%. The fact that operating profit rose sharply while revenue fell means the "mix improvement" of shedding low-margin LCD and raising the high-value OLED share is working. However, the same quarter's net result was -₩575.7 billion; operations were profitable, but non-operating burdens such as financial costs and exchange rates produced a net loss. In short, the direction of the operating recovery is clear, but net profit is still hard to predict stably because it is swayed by interest from debt and by exchange-rate swings — that is the reality of this company now.
Recent disclosures show two axes: earnings recovery and financial management. On April 23, a fair disclosure of preliminary consolidated results confirmed the Q1 operating-profit turnaround (+338% year on year), and two investor briefings (IR) in April and May laid out an OLED-centered strategy and the direction of expanding high-value products. On May 15 the quarterly report finalized the financial details. In early June there was a disclosure of a decision to guarantee debt for a third party (a subsidiary); this is a guarantee to fund and operate the subsidiary, showing a situation in which financial burden must continue to be managed alongside the high debt level. Rather than directly positive disclosures such as new orders or dividends, the recent core has been earnings confirmations and finance-related filings, and the point to watch is whether operating improvement continues in the next quarter and whether the net result comes down to positive.
The strengths are clear. The shift to OLED is showing up in actual results, turning to an operating profit for the first time in four years, and the product mix is improving enough that profit rises even as revenue falls. The oligopoly in which OLED for Apple's premium devices is effectively split between two Korean companies, and the favorable demand flow of wider OLED adoption in tablets and laptops, both work in this company's favor. The share price sits below net assets (a 0.84x P/B). On the other side the cautions are also clear. Because of the heavy financial structure — a 407.6% debt ratio and a 0.45 interest coverage ratio — a net loss can occur even with an operating profit, as in Q1, so on a net-profit basis the recovery is not yet complete. In sum, this is a phase in which, if OLED demand expands as planned and financial-cost and exchange-rate burdens settle, the operating recovery could carry through to net profit, but conversely, if demand wavers or rates and exchange rates turn unfavorable, the high debt pulls the net result down immediately. Rather than concluding one way or the other, it is appropriate to watch, quarter by quarter, whether the core recovery reaches net profit and whether financial costs decline.
🔎 Valuation vs peers Inconclusive
In the display-panel industry the effective rivals also supplying Apple OLED are Samsung Display (a Samsung Electronics subsidiary, not separately listed) and Chinese panel makers, but with no suitable directly listed pure-play panel comparable on the site, its position is judged on the substance of its own financials and industry conditions.
| Peer | P/E | P/B | ROE |
|---|---|---|---|
| LG Display | 21.12x | 0.74x | 3.43% |
(a) Position versus peers: with no directly comparable pure-play panel listing domestically, we judge on the company's own financials and industry conditions. (b) Premium/discount: trading at a 0.84x P/B below book net assets is a discount factor, but this also reflects low profitability (a 3.4% ROE) and debt above 400% together. (c) Limits of the trailing P/E and the forward basis: because the company is at an earnings inflection, the trailing 24.6x P/E alone makes it hard to conclude it is overvalued. That net profit is itself a small figure that only just turned positive in 2025, and in Q1 2026 a net loss occurred even with an operating profit, so net-profit volatility is large. On the future direction we do not fix a specific figure, as the company gives no net-profit guidance. Rather, in a capital-intensive panel industry the position versus net assets (P/B) and the operating-profit recovery trajectory are more valid yardsticks. With strengths (OLED shift, oligopoly demand, sub-1x P/B) and weaknesses (high debt, net-profit volatility) clearly opposed, until net-profit stabilization is confirmed it is more accurate to remain inconclusive than to declare it undervalued or overvalued.
Price history Close · MA20 · MA60
The latest close is ₩9,560 and the market capitalization is ₩4.8 trillion. The price sits below its 20-day moving average (₩9,829) and below its 60-day moving average (₩12,211). 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 -12.1%, the three-month change is -25.1%, and the position relative to the 52-week high is -42.7%. Relative strength versus the KOSPI is 15 (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 14% of all stocks. Over the past three months it lagged the index by 8.7%. 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 -8.66% / 6M -31.93% / 12M -53.03%
Key metrics Computed vs whole-market median
Valuation
The P/E of 21.12x is above the whole-market median (12.97x). The P/B of 0.74x is in line with the whole-market median (0.84x). That said, this P/E is based on last year's (trailing) results. With recent quarterly earnings up sharply, the trailing P/E can look higher than it really is, so a precise read is best done on this year's expected (forward) earnings.
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.
Intrinsic value (DCF estimate) Estimate
Model output — not a price target. This is what the formula returns under the assumptions below, not a view on where the share price should go.
DCF (discounted cash flow) estimate — discount rate 10.4%, initial growth 4.0%→terminal 2.0%, 10-yr forecast, free-cash-flow basis. A reference range that shifts materially with assumptions.
Profitability & financials
Return on equity (ROE) is 3.4%, in line with the whole-market average (3.0%). The operating margin is 2.5%. The debt ratio is 302.2%, so the financial structure is somewhat high.
Growth FY2025 · annual report (consolidated)
| Item | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $15.0B | $18.7B | $18.1B | -3.03% ↓ slower |
| Operating profit | -$1.8B | -$393.8M | $363.2M | — |
| Net profit | -$1.9B | -$1.8B | $159.0M | — |
| 5-year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $21.0B | $18.4B | $15.0B | $18.7B | $18.1B |
| Operating profit | $1.6B | -$1.5B | -$1.8B | -$393.8M | $363.2M |
| Net profit | $833.3M | -$2.2B | -$1.9B | -$1.8B | $159.0M |
| Revenue CAGR | 4-yr avg -3.59% | ||||
Revenue fell 3.0% year over year (2023 ₩21.3 trillion → 2024 ₩26.6 trillion → 2025 ₩25.8 trillion), and the three-year trend is 'mixed'. The rate of decline widened from the prior year. Over the 5 years on record, revenue compound annual growth (CAGR) is -3.6%. The two-year revenue CAGR is 10.0%. In the most recent quarter (Q1 2026), revenue was 8.8% lower than the same period a year earlier.
Latest quarterly results Source Q1 2026 · vs year-ago
Technical indicators Computed
What stands out
- —
Points to watch
- Debt far exceeds equity (debt ratio 302.2%).
- Assets that can be turned to cash within a year fall short of near-term liabilities (current ratio 73.6%).
- Revenue fell 3.0% year over year (3-year trend: mixed).
- The price is high versus peers, so expectations already appear priced in.
Recent news & events searched · sourced
- 2026-04-23EarningsQ1 2026 preliminary consolidated results fair disclosure — revenue ₩5.534 trillion, operating profit ₩146.7 billion (+338% year on year), profitable operating tone maintainedShort term: confirms continued operating recovery, backing the OLED-shift progress. Medium term: a net loss in the same quarter leaves confirming the durability of profitability as a task. Source
- 2026-05-12IRNotice of investor briefing (IR) — explaining the OLED-centered business strategy and the direction of expanding high-value productsShort term: a chance to check the business and earnings backdrop through the company's official channel. Medium term: whether the presented OLED-share expansion and profitability improvement carry through to subsequent results needs to be cross-checked. Source
- 2026-05-15FilingMarch 2026 quarterly report filed — Q1 consolidated financial statements and business-segment status finalized and disclosedShort term: the preliminary results are finalized. Medium term: the primary material for a precise check of financial strength such as the debt ratio and liquidity. Source
- 2026-06-02UpdateDecision to guarantee debt for a third party (subsidiary) (amended) disclosed — a guarantee related to funding and operating the subsidiaryShort term: limited direct impact on the share price. Medium term: an element reflecting a situation in which financial burden must continue to be managed alongside the high debt level. Source
Figure cross-check computed ↔ external
Recent filings Source
- 2026-06-09OwnershipOwnership-change filing
- 2026-06-02Amended filing
- 2026-06-01OwnershipOwnership-change filing
- 2026-06-01Large-business-group status disclosure
- 2026-05-28Corporate governance report
- 2026-05-28Disclosure
- 2026-05-15PeriodicQuarterly report
- 2026-05-12Disclosure
- 2026-04-29PeriodicAnnual business report
- 2026-04-27OwnershipOfficers'/major-shareholders' holdings report
- 2026-04-24Disclosure
- 2026-04-23EarningsFair-disclosure notice
📖 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.