Cosmax코스맥스

Cosmax is a large Korean contract cosmetics maker whose trailing profits have grown, but its debt and negative free cash flow stand out.

Cosmax makes cosmetics for other brands, with plants in Korea, China, the US, Indonesia and Thailand. On trailing twelve-month figures to H1 2026 it reports revenue of about ₩2.66T, operating income of about ₩210B and an operating margin of 7.9%. The share price closed at ₩260,500 on 2026-10-28, well below its 52-week high of ₩320,000 but far above its low of ₩141,000.

What stands out

• Trailing revenue of ₩2.66T and net income of ₩184B compare with ₩2.40T and ₩123B for full-year 2025, and revenue grew 10.7% in 2025.
• Borrowings of ₩1.27T against cash of ₩337B leave liabilities at 276% of equity, and trailing free cash flow is negative at about -₩71B.
• Trailing ROE is 32.9%, but this is high partly because equity is small relative to debt; 2022 ROE was only 3.6%.
• Valuation is around 16x earnings, 4.6x book and 13.7x EV/EBITDA, with a 1.3% dividend yield; the DCF base value in the data is ₩207,573, below the current price, while the bull case is ₩505,860.
• Foreign ownership fell from 37.1% to 33.7% over about 60 days, and 20-day flows show foreign and retail net selling against net institutional buying.
• Recent headlines focus on China expansion targets, including a stated ambition of ₩1T in Chinese sales by 2030, and a new brand marketing subsidiary.

What to watch

• Filings on a short-term borrowing increase and an amended half-year report, which bear on the debt load and reported figures.
• Whether free cash flow turns positive as the company expands in China and launches new subsidiaries.
• Foreign ownership trend and the share price relative to the wide 52-week range; the data does not include any analyst ratings or forecasts.