LG Household's net profit rises 3.2 percent in 2020

LG Household & Health Care reported 813.1 billion won ($735.6 million) in net profit in 2020, up 3.2 percent year-on-year.

Logo of LG Household & Health Care [LG HOUSEHOLD & HEALTH CARE]

LG Household & Health Care reported 813.1 billion won ($735.6 million) in net profit in 2020, up 3.2 percent year-on-year.

According to its regulatory filing on Wednesday, LG Household & Health Care’s full-year revenue was 7.84 trillion won, up 2.1 percent and a record. The company generated 1.2 trillion won in operating profit, a 3.8-percent increase.

Net profit, operating profit and revenue were all records.

Cosmetics sales came in at 5.6 trillion won, while the operating profit of that unit was 965 billion won.

In last year’s fourth quarter, LG Household & Health Care made 143 billion won in net profit, up 6.6 percent on year. Operating profit was up 6.3 percent to 256 billion won. Quarterly revenue was about 2.1 trillion won, a 4-percent increase year-on-year.

Beauty division sales slid 0.9 percent on year to 1.32 trillion won in the fourth quarter. Its operating profit was up 5.4 percent to 225 billion won.

The home care and daily beauty division, which sells hair products and toothpaste, reported 423 billion won in sales, up 23.6 percent on year, while operating profit increased 7.4 percent to 10 billion won during the same period.

The refreshment division, which sells beverages like Coca-Cola, posted a 3.7 percent on-year growth in sales to 347 billion won. Its operating profit jumped 17.1 percent on year to 20.9 billion won.

The performance was led by improved earnings of the company’s popular beverages such as Coca-Cola, Monster Energy and Seagram's.

“Beauty, with our focus on principle to strengthen brand equity, performed well in major markets such as China and the United States based on improved brand and products while managing to minimize impact from the crisis,” the company said in Wednesday’s report.

“Despite the challenges, the company achieved the No.1 market position in all three businesses in the domestic industry for the first time in company history.”

BY CHEA SARAH [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]