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JONBUR Research · Update note

Kbank · 279570 · Banks

Kbank Q3 2026 Preliminary Earnings: Operating Profit More Than Doubles Year on Year

Why this report

Written after:

Kbank reported preliminary Q3 2026 operating profit of ₩44.0B, up 112.5% from a year earlier and 63.2% from Q2. The result eases the earnings-softening picture in our initiation, but nine-month profit is still slightly below last year and the model estimate remains very wide.

Written Oct 30, 2026 · Data as of Oct 29, 2026 · 0 views

This is not financial advice. The report does not recommend buying or selling anything.

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What happened

In a preliminary earnings filing dated 2026-10-30, Kbank reported results for July to September 2026. The figures are provisional and may differ from final numbers.

Revenue was ₩360.2B, up 11.4% from ₩323.3B a year earlier and up 10.2% from ₩327.0B in Q2. Operating profit was ₩44.0B versus ₩20.7B a year earlier (+112.5%) and ₩27.0B in Q2 (+63.2%). Pre-tax profit from continuing operations was ₩43.8B (+111.0% y/y). Net income was ₩42.1B versus ₩19.2B a year earlier (+119.2%) and ₩26.9B in Q2 (+56.5%).

For the first nine months, revenue was ₩1,011.2B (+1.1% y/y), operating profit ₩103.4B (-2.5%) and net income ₩102.1B (-1.3%). So the strong quarter has nearly closed the gap with last year's cumulative profit but not fully.

What it changes for the thesis

Our initiation described a young bank with volatile profits, falling returns and a share price near its 52-week low. This quarter is a clear improvement against that: H1 2026 net income was ₩71.3B, and Q3 alone added ₩42.1B, a large step up from the Q2 pace.

It does not yet remove the concern about volatility. One quarter does not show a trend, the nine-month figures are still marginally below last year, and the filing gives no breakdown of what drove the jump. Return on equity was 3.2% on the H1 basis and no updated figure is available with these preliminary numbers. Dividend data is also still unavailable.

What it changes for the valuation

The share price was ₩5,090 on 2026-10-29, the day before the filing, so it does not reflect this result. It is 0.8% above the 52-week low of ₩5,050. The market cap was about ₩2.06T, with a trailing P/E of 29.0 and P/B of 0.8, both based on data through H1 2026 and not yet updated for Q3. Peers show P/E of 5.8 for Industrial Bank of Korea and 18.8 for KakaoBank, and P/B of 0.4 and 1.4.

The previous report had no model fair value. The model now gives a range of ₩140 (bear), ₩1,746 (base) and ₩3,840 (bull) per share, using a 9.6% rate and data to H1 2026. This is a model estimate based on the assumptions shown, not a price target. All three values sit below the ₩5,090 share price, and the very wide range shows how sensitive the model is to its inputs. It does not yet include Q3 profit, so the range could shift once full results are in.

Closing view

The quarter is a real positive on earnings: profit more than doubled year on year and rose sharply from Q2. But it is one preliminary quarter, the nine-month totals are roughly flat to slightly lower, and the model estimate, which does not yet include these numbers, sits well below the market price with a very wide spread. The evidence is better than at our initiation but still mixed, and the next full results will matter for judging whether the improvement lasts.

Model estimate of fair value

Bear
₩140
-97%
Base
₩1,746
-66%
Bull
₩3,840
-25%

Model estimate based on the assumptions shown. Not a price target and not a buy or sell signal.

Base case of the P/B vs ROE (excess return) model on the stock's Valuation tab (statements TTM to H1 2026; discount rate 9.6%). Bear and Bull move the main assumptions by fixed steps. See and change the assumptions

Filings and data used

Report history

  1. Oct 30, 2026Update noteEarningsKbank Q3 2026 Preliminary Earnings: Operating Profit More Than Doubles Year on Year
  2. Oct 13, 2026InitiationStart of coverage (300 largest)Kbank: Recently Listed Digital Bank Trades Near 52-Week Low as Earnings Dip

Built only from jonbur's own data: prices and investor flows, filed financial statements and filings, and news headlines. Disclosed (filed) data is labelled as such. Written by AI and may contain mistakes.

This is not financial advice. The report does not recommend buying or selling anything.

Source: KRX statistical information