In October, stocks bought by foreign and institutional investors rise 1.6% when the KOSPI rises and fall 3.3% when it falls... Which stocks are foreign and institutional investors buying?

[Financial News] With the KOSPI down 19% so far this month, foreign investors selectively bought financial, plant and shipping stocks, while institutions picked up secondary battery and biotech stocks. Most of the top stocks by net purchases rose even amid the sharp selloff, reaffirming the power of liquidity.
According to the Korea Exchange (KRX) on the 25th, the KOSPI index closed at 5,550.30 on the 23rd. Compared with 6,838.04 on September 30, it fell 1,287.74 points (18.83%).
The stock foreigners bought the most on a net basis during this period was Woori Financial Group, with net purchases totaling 462.3 billion won. It was followed by Samsung E&A at 293.2 billion won, ISU Petasys at 146.3 billion won, HMM at 128.1 billion won and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries at 122.9 billion won. Foreign investors also made net purchases of DB HiTek and SK Telecom worth 104.2 billion won and 83.1 billion won, respectively.
Among stocks bought by foreign investors, Samsung E&A and HMM stood out. Samsung E&A rose 25.37% so far this month, outperforming the KOSPI by 44.20 percentage points. This appears to reflect its third-quarter results, which far exceeded market expectations, and the wave of target-price hikes by securities firms on the 23rd. HMM also rose 8.63%, delivering a return 27.46 percentage points above the index. Both stocks also saw net purchases by institutions, in addition to foreign investors. By contrast, the electronic components and semiconductor stocks bought by foreign investors underperformed the index. ISU Petasys fell 24.41% over the same period, while DB HiTek dropped 28.40%. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries also declined 29.64%.
Secondary battery and biotech stocks ranked among institutions’ top net purchases. Institutions bought 450.9 billion won worth of LG Energy Solution on a net basis. It was followed by Hanwha Ocean at 420.7 billion won, Samsung Biologics at 353.5 billion won, SK hynix at 291.5 billion won and Samsung SDI at 283.6 billion won. Institutions also bought 264.5 billion won worth of KB Financial Group and 255.7 billion won worth of SK Square.
LG Energy Solution, the stock institutions bought the most, rose 7.28%, delivering a return 26.11 percentage points above the KOSPI. Samsung Biologics and Celltrion also rose 6.21% and 9.40%, respectively.
Meanwhile, improvement in overall market flows remains limited. Foreign investors made net sales of domestic stocks worth 19.036 trillion won this month. Net sales of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix alone totaled 3.9256 trillion won and 10.3126 trillion won, respectively, or 14.2382 trillion won combined. Net sales of the two stocks accounted for about 74.8% of foreign investors’ total net sales. Institutions, by contrast, made net purchases totaling just 2.2484 trillion won.
With share buybacks that had been absorbing selling pressure in large-cap semiconductor stocks now completed, analysts say the return of new sources of buying demand is essential to escaping the bear market. Lee Jae-won, a researcher at Yuanta Securities Korea Co., Ltd., said, “Whether buyers are present to absorb the selling, rather than the size of the selling, will determine the direction of the index and its volatility,” adding, “If the absence of buyers to counter foreign selling was the key factor behind the recent sharp decline, it has been confirmed that the market can also rebound quickly if buyers are present.”
[email protected] Joo Won-gyu Reporter