DL000210.KS

About DL

DL is the holding company of DL Group, formerly known as Daelim, one of Korea's older construction-and-chemicals groups. Its two principal assets are a controlling interest in the separately listed builder DL E&C and ownership of DL Chemical, a polymer producer that expanded internationally by acquiring U.S.-based Kraton, a maker of styrenic block copolymers. Smaller holdings include hotel and leisure operations. A 2021 reorganization split the old Daelim Industrial into this holding structure, and the parent collects dividends, brand fees, and consolidated chemical earnings.

Investors weigh two very different exposures inside one wrapper: a domestic housing-driven construction stake and a global specialty-chemical business whose debt-funded Kraton purchase added leverage to the group. The holding-company discount applies with particular force given modest trading liquidity, and ultimate control rests with the founding family through an unlisted entity above the listed parent. Chemical earnings follow global elastomer and adhesive end-markets, offsetting some Korean construction cyclicality. Preferred share classes and dividend policy influence how foreign funds position in the name.

DL's corporate ancestry is among the oldest in Korean business: the group began in 1939 as Burim Sanghoe, a lumber dealer in Incheon, and grew through postwar reconstruction into Daelim Industrial, a construction-and-chemicals mainstay that built major domestic and Middle Eastern projects. In January 2021 Daelim Industrial was split three ways, creating DL Inc. as the listed holding company, DL E&C as the separately listed builder, and DL Chemical as a wholly owned chemical producer, with the group name changing from Daelim to DL in the process. DL Chemical's 2022 acquisition of U.S. elastomer maker Kraton became the holding company's largest consolidated business bet.

DL mixes holding-company income with consolidated operations. From DL E&C it collects dividends and brand fees; from wholly owned DL Chemical it consolidates the full earnings of a polyolefin and elastomer producer whose Kraton unit sells styrenic block copolymers and pine-based specialty chemicals to adhesive, road-marking, and consumer-product customers worldwide. Chemical profitability follows spreads between feedstocks and specialty polymer prices, with higher-value grades cushioning commodity swings. Hotel and leisure operations under the Glad brand add a small consumer stream. Competitive position in specialty elastomers is global and concentrated among few producers, while the construction stake's value tracks the Korean housing cycle.

Company profile by LineVest editorial. Journalism, not investment advice. Commission a full DART-based report on DL →