Stunning Value: "Welcron Holds 70% Share of Bulletproof Plates... Expected to Benefit from Expanding K-Defense Exports"

[Financial News] Welcron is drawing attention as a downstream beneficiary of rising K-Defense Industry exports, as it expands its defense business beyond personal bulletproof plates into add-on armor for armored vehicles and tactical vehicles. Expectations are also growing for improved earnings this year, helped by stronger overseas sales of cooling bedding.
On the 25th, Stunning Value Research named defense materials and cooling materials as Welcron's two main growth drivers going forward. However, it did not provide an investment rating or a target price.
According to Stunning Value Research, Welcron is estimated to hold about 70% of the domestic procurement and order market for bulletproof plates. The company has recently expanded its business from supplying personal bulletproof plates and bulletproof vests to the military into bulletproof plates for add-on armor used on armored vehicles and tactical vehicles.
It also sees the growing export of armored vehicles by domestic defense companies such as Hyundai Rotem Company and Mobile Tactical Cannon program as a key growth driver. As exports of complete armored vehicles increase and demand for add-on armor rises, overseas K-Defense Industry orders are expected to translate into higher materials sales for Welcron.
Defense sales rose 132% from 11.1 billion won in 2024 to 25.8 billion won last year. The company is expanding overseas sales efforts to Saudi Arabia, Poland, Romania, Indonesia and Taiwan, and aims to reach 50 billion won in defense sales by 2029.
Cooling bedding has also emerged as a new earnings pillar. Its ice bedding products, which use the "Air Tunnel" technology, have sold out for seven consecutive years, and sales based on shipment prices exceeded 11 billion won last year. Backed by Costco Wholesale Corporation in Korea, the company is expanding its sales network from Japan, Taiwan and China to Europe, the Americas and the Middle East.
Meanwhile, Welcron's separate financial statements showed sales of 95.1 billion won in 2025, up 13.4% from a year earlier, while operating profit rose 69.4% to 6.74 billion won. This year, the key point to watch is whether consolidated earnings improve as higher defense utilization rates and stronger cooling bedding exports are combined with a base effect from costs related to subsidiaries.
Stunning Value Research said, "Welcron is expanding its business from personal protection to vehicle protection materials," adding that "rising K-Defense Industry exports and stronger overseas sales of cooling bedding will be the key variables for earnings improvement in 2026."
[email protected] Kim Kyung-a Reporter