Anapass is a fabless chip company that designs chips and outsources their manufacturing, with about 98% of revenue coming from OLED-panel timing controllers (T-CON) and TED chipsets that combine a T-CON with a display driver; its uses span smartphones, notebooks, automobiles, and XR. In 2025, smartphone OLED demand dipped and revenue fell, but a rising share of higher-priced, higher-margin IT applications pushed the operating margin up to 18.6%; entering 2026, the company signaled shareholder-return intent through a treasury-share buyback and a corporate value-up plan. The point to watch is this: its stake in U.S. affiliate GCT Semiconductor is carried at zero book value, so it can act as an option that is open only to the upside with no added downside, and business leverage is strong as the product lineup widens into IT and automotive uses; conversely, that stake's value swings on the U.S. market and rocks net profit quarter to quarter, and share-pledge filings hint at a possible change in the largest shareholder.
At-a-glance assessment financial health · growth · profitability · valuation
- Debt ratio, current ratio and interest burden all look healthy.
- Revenue fell 40.6% year over year (3-year trend: mixed).
- Most recent quarter (Q1 2026) revenue was 31.6% lower than a year earlier.
- ROE is 3.6% (total-net basis). It is above the sector average.
- Operating margin is 18.6%.
- The P/E sits above the sector median, reflecting elevated expectations.
Ownership & governance As of 2025-12-31
Largest shareholder Lee Kyung-ho 13.77% (individual)
Controlling bloc incl. related parties 15.16%
With the controlling bloc holding 15%, control is maintained but the free float is relatively large.
🔎 In-depth analysis
- Anapass is a fabless chip company that, rather than running its own plants, designs chips and outsources their manufacturing.
- Most of its revenue (about 98%) comes from OLED-panel timing controllers (T-CON, the chip that controls when and how a video signal is painted to the screen) and TED chipsets that fold a display driver (DDI) into the T-CON on a single chip.
- Uses span not just smartphones but notebooks, tablets, monitors, TVs, automobiles, and XR devices.
- In 2025, smartphone OLED demand dipped once and revenue fell, but as the share of higher-priced, higher-margin IT-oriented OLED T-CONs (for notebooks and tablets) rose, the operating margin actually improved.
- The company also holds an affiliate structure with a stake in GCT Semiconductor, a U.S.-listed 5G and communications-chip company, so changes in that stake's value affect the company's overall results.
- The latest close is ₩13,270 and the market capitalization is ₩160.9 billion.
- The price sits below the 20-day line (₩15,340) and below the 60-day line (₩16,963).
- Trading below both the short- and medium-term moving averages, the trend is on the soft side.
- The RSI (an indicator comparing upward and downward force over the past 14 days on a 0-100 scale) is 28.8, close to a depressed zone.
- The one-month change is -9.4%, the three-month change is -25.4%, and the position versus the 52-week high is -41.0%.
- Relative strength versus the KOSDAQ is 59 (1-99, computed from returns against the index over the past year with recent performance weighted more heavily; higher means stronger than the market).
- That places it in roughly the top 41% of all stocks by strength.
- Over the past three months it led the index by 1.2%.
- Chart reading is best done alongside trading volume and filing dates.
- The current P/E ratio (how many times a year's earnings the share price is) reads high at 59.27x on the surface, but that comes not from an expensive core business but from 2025 net profit being temporarily pressed down to ₩2.7 billion.
- Operating profit that year held at ₩20.2 billion with almost no decline, and the operating margin was solid at 18.6%; net profit alone plunged 85% because the valuation loss on the U.S. affiliate stake (GCT Semiconductor) was deducted at the net-profit stage rather than in the core business.
- So reading the trailing P/E of 68x, the P/B (how many times book net assets the share price is) of 2.13x, or the ROE (how much it earns in a year on equity) of 3.6% at face value as 'expensive' or 'low' would miss the core business's real earnings power.
- Isolating core operating profit (₩20.2 billion, an 18.6% margin), profitability itself does not trail fellow fabless names such as LX Semicon.
- Financial strength is ample relative to the debt: against a debt ratio of 163.7%, interest coverage is 33.7x and the current ratio is 237%.
- In short, this is a name that calls for separating core earnings from the affiliate stake's value rather than judging it on one or two surface multiples.
- Recent results show 2024 revenue of ₩182.2 billion and net profit of ₩18.9 billion — a big spike — after which 2025 revenue came down to ₩108.2 billion (-40.6%), the combined result of the base effect from the 2024 peak and the mobile OLED cycle turning down.
- Operating profit over the same period held nearly flat at ₩20.2 billion, and defending profit while revenue fell 40% reflects the shift toward higher-priced, higher-margin IT-oriented OLED T-CONs (for notebooks and tablets).
- Q1 2026 showed revenue of ₩15.2 billion (-31.6% year on year) and operating profit of ₩0.48 billion (-86.6%), with the core business still passing near the mobile-cycle trough.
- By contrast, the same quarter's net profit of ₩3.9 billion came not from the core business improving but from a non-recurring valuation gain on the U.S. affiliate stake.
- Because that stake's valuation swings net profit sharply each quarter (a large valuation loss in 2025, a valuation gain in Q1 2026), this year's net profit is hard to pin to a single number, and the company has not set a separate annual profit target.
- So for this name, tracking the pace of the core operating-profit recovery and the widening lineup into IT and automotive is closer to the real value than forcing a forward P/E on this year's net profit.
- Entering 2026, shareholder-return and governance filings came in succession.
- A treasury-share buyback decision on March 27 signaled shareholder-return intent, and on April 21 a corporate value-up plan (voluntary filing) laid out a medium-to-long-term direction for enhancing shareholder value.
- Meanwhile, across March and April, share-pledge agreements that could accompany a change in the largest shareholder and large-holding change filings recurred, so the governance angle is another variable to watch.
- The May 15 Q1 report confirmed within the same quarter both the core-business slowdown and the affiliate-driven swing in net profit.
- The core business, OLED timing controllers, held an 18.6% operating margin even as mobile demand fell, thanks to the expanding high-value IT share; financial strength such as interest coverage and liquidity is sound; and the treasury-share buyback and value-up filings made the shareholder-return intent clear.
- On top of that, the U.S. affiliate GCT Semiconductor stake, carried at zero book value, can act as an option open only to the upside with no added downside burden should that company's 5G business take hold.
- Even if the surface P/E and P/B look high, from a perspective that adds the core business's earnings power to the separate stake value, the price is hard to call heavy on its own.
- That said, that affiliate stake's value swings on the U.S. market and rocks net profit each quarter, and the core business too may keep seeing revenue and operating-profit softness until the mobile OLED cycle confirms a bottom.
- The share-pledge filings hinting at a possible change in the largest shareholder are another variable to watch.
- In short, this is a name whose core leverage works strongly as the lineup widens into IT and automotive OLED and the mobile cycle turns, and whose surface earnings metrics look weaker than reality when a cycle trough and affiliate-driven swings overlap.
🔎 Valuation vs peers Inconclusive
A group of fabless display-driver and signal-processing chip (T-CON/DDI) designers of the same type. The representative peer with comparable figures on the site is LX Semicon, and small fabless display-IC names such as TLi and Dongwoon Anatech belong to the same category.
| Peer | P/E | P/B | ROE |
|---|---|---|---|
| LX Semicon | 7.42x | 0.54x | 7.34% |
(a) Compared with fellow fabless name LX Semicon, which trades at a P/E of 9.6x, a P/B of 0.7x, and an ROE of 7.3%, Anapass's P/E of 74x and P/B of 2.67x look far higher on the surface. (b) But that premium is not real operating value; it is the illusion of 2025 net profit being pressed down to ₩2.7 billion by the affiliate-stake valuation loss. (c) A trailing P/E on last year's confirmed earnings is effectively meaningless in a year of an earnings inflection compounded by a one-off loss, and the assessment changes when viewed on core operating profit (₩20.2 billion, an 18.6% operating margin). At the same time, net profit hinges on the affiliate-stake valuation swings, making this year's net profit hard to estimate reliably, so rather than declaring it undervalued or overvalued either way, we hold judgment. A sum-of-parts view that separates core-business value from the affiliate-stake value is more appropriate.
Price history Close · MA20 · MA60
The latest close is ₩13,270 and the market capitalization is ₩160.9 billion. The price sits below its 20-day moving average (₩15,340) and below its 60-day moving average (₩16,963). 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 28.8, near oversold territory. The one-month change is -9.4%, the three-month change is -25.4%, and the position relative to the 52-week high is -41.0%. Relative strength versus the KOSDAQ is 59 (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 59% of all stocks. Over the past three months it outpaced the index by 1.2%. 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 +1.19% / 6M -7.06% / 12M -26.26%
Key metrics vs sector median
Valuation
The P/E of 59.27x is above the sector median (27.09x). The P/B is 2.13x.
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)
DCF (discounted cash flow) estimate — discount rate 11.0%, initial growth 4.0%→terminal 2.0%, 10-yr forecast, free-cash-flow basis. A reference range that shifts materially with assumptions.
Profitability & financials
The operating margin is 18.6%. The debt ratio is 163.7%, so the financial structure is moderate.
Growth FY2025 · annual report (separate)
| Item | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $47.4M | $120.8M | $71.7M | -40.64% ↓ slower |
| Operating profit | $3.0M | $13.3M | $13.4M | +0.54% ↓ slower |
| Net profit | $1.8M | $12.5M | $1.8M | -85.64% ↓ slower |
| 5-year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $32.1M | $28.7M | $47.4M | $120.8M | $71.7M |
| Operating profit | $5.2M | -$4.6M | $3.0M | $13.3M | $13.4M |
| Net profit | $8.4M | -$8.7M | $1.8M | $12.5M | $1.8M |
| Revenue CAGR | 4-yr avg 22.28% | ||||
Revenue fell 40.6% year over year (2023 ₩71.5 billion → 2024 ₩182.2 billion → 2025 ₩108.2 billion), and the three-year trend is 'mixed'. The rate of decline widened from the prior year. Operating profit rose 0.5% year over year. The pace of that profit growth is gradually easing. Over the 5 years on record, revenue compound annual growth (CAGR) is 22.3%. The two-year revenue CAGR is 23.0%. In the most recent quarter (Q1 2026), revenue was 31.6% lower than the same period a year earlier.
Latest quarterly results Q1 2026 · vs year-ago
Technical indicators
What stands out
- The balance sheet is stable in terms of debt and liquidity.
Points to watch
- Revenue fell 40.6% year over year (3-year trend: mixed).
- The price is high versus peers, so expectations already appear priced in.
Recent news & events searched · sourced
- 2026-04-21FilingVoluntary filing of a corporate value-up plan — a medium-to-long-term direction for enhancing shareholder valueA medium-term signal of expected shareholder returns and capital-efficiency improvement, though confirming specific financial targets from the filing text is limited. Source
- 2026-03-27UpdateTreasury-share buyback decision — resolved to purchase own shares to enhance shareholder valueShort-term supply-demand support and confirmation of shareholder-return intent. Reduces the free-float share count. Source
- 2026-04-15UpdateShare-pledge agreement that could accompany a change in the largest shareholder, and a large-holding change reportA governance-uncertainty factor. The largest-shareholder position could shift depending on how the pledge situation develops. Source
- 2026-05-15EarningsQ1 2026 report — revenue ₩15.2 billion (-31.6% year on year), operating profit ₩0.48 billion; net profit of ₩3.9 billion reflects an affiliate-stake valuation gainThe core business is near a cycle bottom; net profit is a non-recurring swing. The quality of earnings needs to be viewed separately. Source
Figure cross-check computed ↔ external
Recent filings
- 2026-05-15PeriodicQuarterly report
- 2026-04-30Disclosure
- 2026-04-21Disclosure
- 2026-04-15OwnershipOwnership-change filing
- 2026-04-15OwnershipLargest-shareholder ownership change report (amended)
- 2026-04-01OwnershipOfficers'/major-shareholders' holdings report
- 2026-04-01OwnershipOwnership-change filing
- 2026-03-30OwnershipLargest-shareholder ownership change report (amended)
- 2026-03-27TreasuryMaterial-fact report (amended)
- 2026-03-27TreasuryMaterial-fact report
- 2026-03-26Shareholders' meeting notice
- 2026-03-18PeriodicAnnual business report
📖 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.