Robotics, pharmaceutical, and defense stocks, which were leading the market in the first half of the year, are experiencing significant corrections in the second half. Shares of Hyundai AutoEver, Hyundai Motor, and Rainbow Robotics, which attracted investor interest due to the humanoid robot craze, have fallen to about half of their peak values. Similarly, major pharmaceutical and defense representatives, Samchundang Pharmaceutical and Hanwha Group, have also seen their stock prices cut in half.
According to the Korea Exchange on October 12, an examination of major sectors in the KOSPI and KOSDAQ markets revealed that stocks in robotics, pharmaceuticals, and defense have dropped more than 50% from their peak values. Samchundang Pharmaceutical, which faced the largest adjustment in the KOSDAQ market, plummeted over 80% in six months. The company's stock price soared to 1,284,000 won on March 30, fueled by high expectations for global expansion of oral insulin, but has since fallen to 212,500 won, marking an 83.6% decline from its peak. During the same period, Peptron, a leading pharmaceutical stock in the KOSDAQ, also dropped 75.5% from its highest price of 363,000 won.
The situation is similar for robotics stocks such as Hyundai AutoEver, Doosan Robotics, and Hyundai Motor. Doosan Robotics reached a peak of 170,000 won on June 2, but its stock price has since fallen to 63,100 won, a decrease of 62.9%. Although expectations for growth in the AI and physical robotics industry initially drove up stock prices, the burden of rapid increases has led to a significant reversal.
Hyundai AutoEver, recognized as the leader in developing the humanoid robot 'Atlas,' saw its stock price drop from a peak of 1,066,000 won on June 1 to 351,000 won, a decline of 67.1%. Hyundai Motor's stock fell from 787,000 won to 318,000 won, a decrease of 59.6%, while Rainbow Robotics dropped from its peak of 979,000 won on May 12 to 390,500 won, reflecting a 60.1% loss.
Defense and aerospace stocks, which had previously surged on mere thematic interest, have not escaped the downturn in the second half of the year. Hanwha Systems rose to 184,000 won on March 4 but has since fallen to 74,000 won, a 59.8% drop. During the same period, Hanwha Aerospace fell from 1,713,000 won to 870,000 won, a 49.1% decline, while LIG Defense and Aerospace dropped from 1,118,000 won to 595,000 won, a 46.8% decrease.
These robotics, pharmaceutical, and defense stocks were classified as leading stocks when the KOSPI index surged to 9,385.59 on June 19, with some prices increasing nearly tenfold, earning them the label 'tenbaggers.' However, in the second half of the year, a combination of rising government bond yields due to global interest rate hikes, unmet expectations for AI robotics, and a lack of new momentum has weakened their upward momentum.
Park Sun-young, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, stated, "The time when events moved the entire sector's stock prices has passed. In the case of robotics stocks, since mass production of humanoids is planned for after 2028, a differentiation in stock prices will begin, focusing on companies that can translate actual orders into repeated contracts and performance growth."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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