South Korea’s two biggest display makers are expected to post contrasting results for the fourth quarter of last year. Samsung Display is looking at 2 trillion won in operating profit on higher shipments of small and mid-sized OLED panels, while LG Display is expected to fall short of market expectations due to restructuring costs.

Kiwoom Securities estimates Samsung Display’s fourth-quarter operating profit at 1.64 trillion won, up 34 percent from the previous quarter. The operating margin is seen at 18 percent. IBK Investment & Securities, meanwhile, estimates LG Display’s operating profit for the same period at 320 billion won. Excluding one-off costs, the operating margin is 4.6 percent, a gap of more than 13 percentage points from Samsung Display.

The profitability gap stems from their business structures. Samsung Display boosted results with small and mid-sized OLED panels for smartphones. Fourth-quarter sales of small OLED panels rose 13 percent to 8.28 trillion won from 7.34 trillion won the previous quarter, Kiwoom Securities said. Shipments increased as the impact of a new product launch by a North American customer extended into the fourth quarter.

That reflects a restructuring of its business toward small and mid-sized OLED panels in line with profitability. Fourth-quarter sales of large OLED panels rose 46 percent to 592 billion won from 405 billion won the previous quarter, according to Kiwoom Securities, but their share of total sales was just 6 percent. Small and mid-sized OLED accounted for 89 percent of total sales, lifting profitability.

LG Display, however, was weighed down by restructuring costs. IBK Investment & Securities expects fourth-quarter results to be 28 percent below its previous estimate of 445 billion won in operating profit. It said about 100 billion won in one-off costs were reflected as restructuring continued into the fourth quarter after the third quarter.

LG Display is adjusting its business portfolio. It has completed the sale of its LCD TV business and is pushing to discontinue low-profit IT LCD models. IBK Investment & Securities said fourth-quarter mobile sales were 3.17 trillion won, accounting for 45 percent of companywide sales. It said the company nevertheless saw results from efforts to improve its business structure centered on P-OLED.

◆"It will remain in operating profit in the first half of 2026"

While their fourth-quarter results are expected to diverge, both companies have a positive outlook for this year. Samsung Display is expected to see greater quarterly volatility. Kiwoom Securities estimates its operating profit in the first quarter of 2026 at 424 billion won, sharply down from the previous quarter, before recovering to 1.24 trillion won in the fourth quarter. It also said Samsung Display is expected to maintain its dominance in the small and mid-sized OLED market this year, as it did last year.

LG Display is expected to see a full-fledged turnaround. IBK Investment & Securities said LG Display could break out of a first-half loss pattern starting this year. High-margin mobile volumes have been concentrated in the second half, while LCD losses have weighed heavily in the first half. It said the sale of the LCD TV business and the discontinuation of low-profit IT LCD models will begin to be fully reflected from the first half of next year. It estimates first-quarter operating profit at 109 billion won, up 227 percent from a year earlier.

LG Display is also seeing a more favorable environment in terms of technological competitiveness. IBK Investment & Securities said LG Display’s technological edge has been highlighted again due to recent yield issues in LTPO (low-temperature polycrystalline oxide) at Chinese panel makers. LTPO is a technology that reduces power consumption by adjusting display refresh rates, and is essential in premium smartphones. As Chinese rivals struggle to secure yields, it expects LG Display’s share of mobile and IT panels at a North American customer to remain solid.