[비즈엔터 윤준필 기자]

▲aespa(Bizenter DB)

SM Entertainment (KOSDAQ 041510, hereafter referred to as SM) is gearing up for a stock price rebound.

In the first half of this year, SM could not avoid the overall decline in entertainment stocks. In March, the stock price fell to 70,000 KRW. However, as of the morning of the 8th, it had risen to 79,000 KRW, recovering about 12.8% from its lowest point.

The second quarter earnings outlook is also promising. On the 28th of last month, NH Investment & Securities researcher Lee Hwa-jung stated, "SM's consolidated sales for the second quarter are expected to match the previous year's level at 241 billion KRW, with operating profit increasing by 7% year-on-year to 38.3 billion KRW, meeting market expectations."

Hana Securities took a more conservative view. On the 18th of last month, Hana Securities researcher Lee Ki-hoon predicted SM's second-quarter sales and operating profit to be 233.9 billion KRW and 35 billion KRW, respectively, a 2% decrease compared to the same period last year.

▲aespa(SM Entertainment)

The recovery in stock prices and the potential to achieve similar performance levels as the previous year are attributed to the groups aespa and RIIZE. One reason for the dampened investment sentiment towards SM was the decline of album sales in the first week of release," which has now been resolved.

aespa, SM's flagship artist, released their 4th mini album 'Drama' in November last year. This album's first-week sales reached 1.13 million copies. This was a significant record, ranking within the top 7 all-time first-week sales for girl groups. However, aespa had set the all-time girl group first-week sales record with their 3rd mini album 'MY WORLD' at 1.69 million copies, leading to concerns about their growth decline.

Nevertheless, aespa succeeded in rebounding with their first full-length album 'Armageddon' released in May, recording 1.15 million copies in first-week sales. Notably, they achieved million-seller status with four consecutive albums since their 2nd mini album 'Girls' in July 2022, proving concerns about their growth decline were unfounded.

▲aespa(SM Entertainment)

aespa also demonstrated their dominance on the music charts. The double title track 'Supernova' from their first full-length album maintained the top spot on Melon’s weekly chart (July 1-7) for seven consecutive weeks, setting the longest-running No. 1 record for a song released this year. Another title track, 'Armageddon,' also stayed in the top 10, continuing the dual-hit success alongside 'Supernova.'

Globally, aespa also achieved notable success. On Spotify, the world's largest audio and music streaming platform, 'Supernova' surpassed 1.94 million streams on the first day and 2.79 million streams on the second day, setting their highest daily streaming record. Additionally, within approximately nine weeks of its release, 'Supernova' accumulated 130.25 million streams.

▲RIIZE(SM Entertainment)

RIIZE, who released their first mini album 'RIIZING' on the 17th, also significantly contributed to SM’s rebound. RIIZE recorded 1.02 million copies in first-week sales with their debut album, followed by 1.255 million copies with their first mini album, achieving two consecutive million-seller titles.

The album also topped the iTunes Top Albums chart in 10 regions worldwide, ranked first on Japan’s Line Music Weekly Album 100 chart, first on Apple Music’s Top Albums chart, and first on China’s QQ Music Korean Music Weekly chart and Soaring Chart. They also made their first entry into the UK Official Chart’s Single Downloads and Single Sales charts, achieving remarkable results on global charts.

In addition to album sales, RIIZE continued their success with their title track 'Boom Boom Bass,' which ranked 16th on Melon’s Top 100, 2nd on HOT100 (within 30 days of release), 3rd on Bugs’ real-time chart, and 1st on Vibe’s Soaring chart. They also swept the top spots on five music shows aired in the last week of June, including SBS M 'The Show,' MBC M 'Show Champion,' Mnet 'M Countdown,' KBS2 'Music Bank,' and SBS 'Inkigayo.'

In February, the new boy group NCT WISH successfully established themselves in both Korea and Japan. Existing IPs like NCT 127, NCT DREAM, Red Velvet’s Wendy, TVXQ, Super Junior, and Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon also continued to perform steadily. This balance between new and established IPs is another factor that raises expectations for SM in the second half of the year.