LOTTE Rental's third-quarter operating profit rises 4.4% year on year to 92.9 billion won

[Financial News] LOTTE Rental's third-quarter operating profit rose 4.4% from a year earlier to 92.9 billion won.
LOTTE Rental said on the 5th that its preliminary consolidated revenue for the third quarter was 775.4 billion won, up 2.3% from the same period a year earlier. Its operating margin rose 0.3 percentage points to 12.0%, and operating profit increased 9.8% from the previous quarter. It said that on a like-for-like basis, excluding one-off factors and other items, operating profit rose 6.6% to 97.2 billion won and net income increased 15.5% to 45.5 billion won.
Cumulatively through the third quarter, adjusted operating profit reached 271.9 billion won and adjusted net income 118.1 billion won, both posting double-digit growth. Profits rose across Auto Long-Term, Auto Short-Term and Biz Rental, driven by a larger share of high-margin products and greater cost efficiency.
The used-car sales segment maintained a double-digit operating margin, with revenue of 206.4 billion won and operating profit of 24 billion won. LOTTE Rental said that, in view of market conditions in July and August, it did not rush to sell high-quality used vehicles, instead first shifting them into long-term used-car rentals. The decision prioritized increasing vehicle lifetime value (LTV) over short-term sales gains; vehicles shifted to rentals generate rental revenue over the contract period, creating a foundation for future profit growth. From September, as the market stabilized, the company increased inventory turnover through wholesale-focused sales. In the fourth quarter, it will optimize its sales portfolio with a focus on profitability.
The company also continued to expand overseas and its services. LOTTE Rental established a local subsidiary in Japan and partnered with ORIX Auto, Japan's second-largest rental car company, to launch short-term rental services for Korean travelers in Okinawa in July. In August, it formed a strategic partnership with global car rental company Hertz, expanding its overseas reservation service to 63 cities in eight countries. In September, LOTTE rent-a-car G car said it had launched “G car AI Reservation,” an industry-first service that lets users book a vehicle by voice.
A LOTTE Rental representative said, “Even amid volatility in the used-car market, improvements to our business structure centered on our core rental business are translating into profit growth,” adding, “We will continue to expand high-margin products and innovate on costs to sustain stable growth as the No. 1 operator in the mobility industry.”
[email protected] Kim Dong-chan Reporter