LG records uptick in Q3 sales and operating profit

[Photo by Han Joo-hyung]

LG Group witnessed a slight uptick of 1.86 trillion won ($1.41 billion) and 509.8 billion won in sales and operating profit respectively in the third quarter of 2023. This represents a 7 percent increase in sales and a marginal 0.1 percent rise in operating profit compared to the same period last year.

In addition to the quarterly earnings results released on Thursday, LG unveiled its new dividend policy, which will allocate profits from trademark rights and rental income to fund dividends. The company plans to return more than 50 percent of net profit to shareholders and is now considering utilizing one-time, non-recurring profits for additional shareholder returns via mechanisms such as share repurchases. Following this announcement, LG’s stock closed at 82,700 won per share on Thursday, up 1.47 percent from the previous day.

On the same day, Lotte Chemical Corp. swung back into the black for the first time in six months, recording an operating profit of 28.1 billion won for the third quarter. The chemicals company’s sales for the quarter were 4.8 trillion won, with a 12.5 percent decrease compared to the same period the previous year.

The company’s Basic Materials Business unit saw a year-on-year sales decline of 24.2 percent to 2.58 trillion won in the quarter, but the operating loss narrowed from the previous year due to lagging effects of raw materials and operational efficiency.

Lotte Shopping Co. reported sales of 3.73 trillion won and operating profit of 142 billion won for the third quarter. However, both figures saw a decline of 6.8 percent and 5.3 percent respectively, compared to the same period last year. KT&G Corp. posted record quarterly sales of 1.68 trillion in sales, and 406.7 billion won in operating profit for the third quarter.