Korean EcoPro’s average share price reaches $788 in July amid FOMO

EcoPro BM Co. headquarters [Courtesy of EcoPro BM]

South Korea’s individual investors went on a buying spree of EcoPro shares last month, when the stock price of the country’s manufacturer of electric vehicle battery materials surpassed 1 million won ($780.8), making it the most expensive share in the country’s secondary Kosdaq market for the first time in 16 years, regardless of the controversy over the stock’s overvaluation, data showed on Tuesday.

According to Kiwoom Securities, a securities firm mainly used by individual investors, which compiled the monthly buying and selling volume and average unit price of three EcoPro stocks, including EcoPro Co., EcoPro BM Co., and EcoPro HN Co., from the beginning of the year to July 25, the average purchase price of EcoPro shares in July was 1,009,300 won.

Despite the high price of over 1 million won per share, individual investors, on average, made substantial purchases of EcoPro shares over the past month.

The first time EcoPro’s stock price exceeded 1 million won intraday was on July 10, but it was not until July 18, more than a week later, that it truly settled into the 1 million won range.

In other words, during the week from July 18 to July 25, when the stock price was moving in the 1 million won range, individual investors actively bought the stock, pushing the average unit price closer to 1.01 million won. This phenomenon is interpreted as a result of investors experiencing “FOMO” (Fear of Missing Out).

FOMO refers to the fear of missing out on an opportunity to profit from a rapid increase in asset prices. It has become widely used in South Korea, particularly in the stock, cryptocurrency, and real estate markets, which have experienced a surge in prices since around 2021.

A Kiwoom Securities official said that EcoPro has generated numerous meme contents trending on the internet, causing investors who do not own EcoPro shares to suffer from FOMO. The stock has been setting new all-time highs for several consecutive days, heating up the stock market, the official said.

In July, the total volume of EcoPro shares purchased amounted to 5.35 million shares. Considering that the data was only available until July 25, it is estimated to be slightly lower or comparable to the amounts in May (5.77 million shares) and June (5.57 million shares).

This represents a 342 percent increase compared to the purchase volume in January of 1.21 million shares. In particular, March and April saw an 800 percent surge to over 10 million shares.

The average purchase price of EcoPro BM from July 1 to 25 was 340,200 won, a price range that was likely influenced by concentrated buying during the mid- to late- July period when the stock of EcoPro BM surged into the 300,000 won range.

The stock price of EcoPro BM initially settled around the 320,000 won range on July 18, but then rose to a peak of 584,000 won on July 26 before experiencing a rapid decline.

In July, the total volume of EcoPro BM shares purchased amounted to 10.14 million shares, which represents a 253 percent increase from 2.87 million shares in June.