“They said it would hit 2 million won, 3 million won...” Retail investors blindsided

[Financial News] The KOSPI stocks that individual investors bought heavily this month posted steeper declines than the index. With the KOSPI down 18.77% since the start of the month, all five stocks most heavily net-bought by individual investors fell more than 20%. SK Square and Hyosung Heavy Industries fell by more than 30%.
According to the Korea Exchange on the 15th, the five stocks most heavily net-bought by individual investors on the KOSPI market from the 1st to the 15th of this month, excluding exchange-traded funds (ETFs), were Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, SK Square, Hyosung Heavy Industries and Samsung Electro-Mechanics.
Over the same period, the KOSPI fell 1,283.82 points (18.77%), from 6,838.04 on the 30th of last month to 5,554.22 on the 15th. It plunged 454.59 points (7.57%) on the day alone and at one point during trading fell below the 5,500 mark.
Samsung Electronics was the stock individual investors bought the most. Over the period, they made net purchases worth 5.1345 trillion won. However, its share price fell 22.08%, from 269,500 won on the 30th of last month to a closing price of 210,000 won on the 15th. It fell 9.48% on the day alone.
Individual investors also poured 3.2953 trillion won into SK hynix, which ranked second in net purchases. Its share price fell 29.22% over the same period, from 1,783,000 won to 1,262,000 won. It was down 11.06% on the day. Individual investors’ net purchases of the two semiconductor stocks totaled 8.4298 trillion won.
SK Square and Hyosung Heavy Industries shares have fallen more than 30% this month. SK Square, in which individual investors made net purchases worth 597.5 billion won, fell 32.48% from 1,133,000 won at the end of last month to 765,000 won on the 15th. Individual investors made net purchases worth 540.7 billion won in Hyosung Heavy Industries, but its share price fell 34.66%, from 2,787,000 won to 1,821,000 won. It had the steepest decline among the top five stocks.
Individual investors also made net purchases worth 329.3 billion won in Samsung Electro-Mechanics, while its share price fell 23.23%, from 1,515,000 won at the end of last month to 1,163,000 won on the 15th. It plunged 15.36% on the day alone. SK Square and Hyosung Heavy Industries also fell 10.21% and 14.71%, respectively, on the day.
[email protected] Lee Jeong-hwa Reporter