JONBUR Research · Update note
LS Marine Solution · 060370 · Construction
LS Marine Solution: Q3 2026 Preliminary Operating Profit Rises 234.6% on Lower Revenue
LS Marine Solution reported preliminary Q3 2026 operating profit of ₩6.9B, up 234.6% from a year earlier, while quarterly revenue fell 4.3%. The result points to better margins than the thin ones in our initiation, but one quarter does not settle the profitability question, and the model still has no estimate.
Written Oct 21, 2026 · Data as of Oct 20, 2026 · 0 views
This is not financial advice. The report does not recommend buying or selling anything.
What happened
On 2026-10-21 the company released preliminary consolidated results for July to September 2026. The figures are provisional and may differ from final numbers.
Revenue was ₩73.6B, down 4.3% from ₩77.0B a year earlier and down 22.9% from ₩95.4B in the prior quarter (April to June 2026).
Operating profit was ₩6.9B, up 234.6% from ₩2.1B a year earlier and up 12.3% from ₩6.1B in the prior quarter. That implies an operating margin of about 9.3% for the quarter, our calculation from the filed figures.
Net profit was ₩6.2B, up 92.3% year on year and down 11.2% from the prior quarter. Pre-tax profit from continuing operations was ₩8.3B, up 101.4% year on year.
For the first nine months, revenue was ₩221.9B (up 17.7%), operating profit ₩17.2B (up 102.7%) and net profit ₩19.3B (up 162.3%).
As background, on 2026-10-20 a filing showed the 5%+ holder LS전선 (LS Cable) raising its stake by 1.4 points to 70.0%. This is not the reason for this note.
What it changes for the thesis
Our initiation on 2026-10-13 described fast revenue growth but thin margins: operating margin fell from 18.5% in 2023 to 2.9% in 2025 and was 3.9% on a trailing basis. It said the data did not show growth turning into stronger profitability.
This result partly addresses that point. The nine-month operating profit of ₩17.2B already exceeds the full-year 2025 figure of ₩7.0B, and the quarterly margin of about 9.3% is well above the 2.9% for 2025.
But revenue fell in the quarter, both year on year and against the prior quarter, so the growth leg of the thesis was not confirmed this time. Free cash flow was negative at -₩43.4B in the earlier data, and the filing gives no cash flow figures, so that concern is unchanged. One preliminary quarter is not enough to call a lasting margin recovery.
What it changes for the valuation
The model has no estimate for this company, and the previous report had none either, so no model range per share (bear, base or bull) can be compared with the share price. The result does not change that.
The shares closed at ₩28,400 on 2026-10-20, with a market cap of ₩1,483.6B. The data pack shows a trailing P/E of 132.4, P/B of 2.3 and P/S of 5.3. These use trailing figures through H1 2026 and do not yet include this quarter's results, so they likely overstate the earnings multiple once Q3 is added.
For comparison, peer P/E ratios range from 3.6 to 22.7 (Daewoo E&C not available). The multiple remains far above peers even allowing for the stronger quarter.
Closing view
The evidence is mixed but leans somewhat better than at initiation. Profit more than tripled year on year and the margin is clearly above 2025 levels. Revenue declined, though, the figures are preliminary, cash flow data are not updated, and the valuation still depends on earnings continuing to grow well above today's level. With no model estimate, no comparison with the share price can be made. Final filed Q3 figures and cash flow will show whether the margin improvement holds.
Model estimate of fair value
The valuation model has no estimate for this company yet (not enough data, or no positive value with the base case).
Filings and data used
- Preliminary earnings (consolidated)Oct 21, 2026
- 5%+ holding reportOct 20, 2026
- Amended: Insider shareholding reportOct 20, 2026
- Insider shareholding reportOct 15, 2026
- Insider shareholding reportOct 12, 2026
- Insider shareholding reportOct 2, 2026
- 5%+ holding reportOct 1, 2026
- Major sales or supply contractSep 18, 2026
- Investor relations (IR) eventSep 7, 2026
- Amended: Major sales or supply contractAug 31, 2026
- Disclosure on Large Business Group Status [Quarterly Disclosure (For Individual Company)]Aug 31, 2026
- Trading Plan Report for Executives and Major Shareholders' Specific SecuritiesAug 26, 2026
- LS Marine Solution begins laying submarine cable in MalaysiaOct 14, 2026
- LS Marine Solution wins ₩820B order to lay Malaysian submarine cableOct 14, 2026
- LS Marine Solution Starts Malaysia Cable ProjectOct 14, 2026
- LS마린솔루션, 말레이시아 해저케이블 사업 착수Oct 14, 2026
- LS Marine Solution Lays Subsea Cable in Malaysia, Backlog Rises to ₩820BOct 14, 2026
- LS Marine Solution laying undersea cable in Malaysia, expanding overseas business after TaiwanOct 14, 2026
- LS Marine Solution begins undersea cable construction in Malaysia... expands overseas power grid pushOct 13, 2026
- Daily prices up to 2026-10-20
- Financial statements, trailing 12 months as of H1 2026
Report history
Source: KRX statistical information