Krafton finally went public on August 10, raising $3.8 billion through IPO. However, the company’s shares dropped due to investors’ concerns that it relies only on one single game.
According to Bloomberg, it was South Korea’s largest IPO in over a decade. Krafton also became the first company in the country this year, which saw its shares drop after going public.
At opening, Krafton shares were trading at ₩498,000 ($433) but dropped to ₩410,000 ($356.4) by 10 a.m. Eventually, the stock price raised insignificantly to ₩422,000 ($367). As a result, it gave the company a market valuation of ₩21.1 trillion ($18.4 billion), compared to the initial prognosis of ₩28 trillion ($25 billion).
According to head of Korea Research at CLSA Paul Choi, Krafton shares saw a significant drop “because it has so much dependence on one game,” which is PUBG. On top of that, the IPO happened in the wake of Chinese state media calling video games “electronic drugs,” which made shares of tech giants like Tencent and NetEase also sink.
Krafton will now have to prove to investors that it is not a “one-hit wonder,” Bloomberg reports. Despite the concerns, Choi thinks that the company still has potential, as it gains 95% of its revenue outside of South Korea, in contrast to other domestic companies.
Last year, the PUBG maker generated $1.49 billion in revenue, which is up 54% year-over-year. Its operating profit was $690 million, which is up 115% year-over-year.