LG Display (LPL)·Q4 2025 Earnings Summary
LG Display Posts First Profitable Year in Four Years, Revenue Beats Despite One-Time Charges
January 28, 2026 · by Fintool AI Agent
LG Display (LPL) reported Q4 2025 results that topped revenue expectations but included substantial one-time charges that obscured a quarter of meaningful underlying improvement. Revenue of ₩7.2 trillion beat consensus by 2.5%, while operating profit of ₩168.5 billion was weighed down by ~₩370 billion in non-recurring costs.
The headline story: LG Display achieved its first annual turnaround in four years, improving profitability by over ₩1 trillion YoY. OLED revenue share hit a record 61% for the full year, up from 55% in 2024 and just 32% when the business transformation began in 2020.
Did LG Display Beat Earnings?
Revenue: Beat — Q4 revenue of ₩7.2 trillion exceeded consensus by approximately 2.5%, driven by solid TV and notebook PC panel shipments.
Operating Profit: Complicated — Reported operating profit of ₩168.5 billion included ~₩370 billion of one-time charges. Excluding these items, operating profit was approximately ₩550 billion (mid-range), which exceeded market expectations and improved both QoQ and YoY.
EBITDA: Slight Miss — EBITDA of ₩1.162 trillion (16% margin) came in slightly below consensus estimates of ~₩1.2 trillion.
Net Loss: ₩351.2 billion — Primarily driven by foreign currency translation losses from the higher year-end exchange rate, not operational weakness.
Ask Fintool AI AgentWhat Were the One-Time Charges?
Management was transparent about the ~₩370 billion in non-recurring costs, which fell into three categories:
1. Voluntary Retirement Program (~₩90 billion) Costs for domestic and overseas employee restructuring, including local workforce adjustments to address tariff and trade environment changes and customers' production strategy shifts. The economic benefit will offset these costs within approximately 18 months.
2. Employee Incentives Performance bonuses tied to achieving the company's first annual turnaround in four years, designed to motivate continued transformation and technology leadership.
3. Portfolio Rationalization Costs for reducing low-margin products, inventory write-downs, and business/product portfolio adjustments to strengthen the profit structure.
"Total non-recurring cost impact in Q4 was in the high ₩300 billion range... Excluding these items, Q4 operating profit was roughly mid-₩500 billion, exceeding market expectations." — CFO Kim Seong-hyun
What Changed From Last Quarter?
The OLED-centric business transformation reached a critical milestone:
OLED Revenue Share: 61% (Record High)
- Q4 2025: 65% (unchanged QoQ, +5pp YoY)
- Full Year 2025: 61% (vs. 55% in 2024)
- Journey: 32% (2020) → 44% (2022) → 55% (2024) → 61% (2025)
LCD Business Exit Complete Large LCD business terminated with the sale of the Guangzhou LCD plant in 2024.
ASP Per Square Meter: $1,297 Down 5% QoQ but up 49% YoY, reflecting the OLED-centric mix shift. Management expects ASP to remain above $1,200 even in seasonally weak Q1, up 50%+ YoY.
Financial Position Strengthening
- Total debt: ₩12.7T (down ₩1.9T YoY)
- Net debt: ₩11.1T (down ₩1.4T YoY)
- Debt-to-equity: 243% (down 64pp YoY)
What Did Management Guide?
Q1 2026 Guidance
Seasonality will impact all product categories in Q1, but ASP decline will be tempered versus historical patterns due to the OLED mix.
Full Year 2026 Outlook
Large OLED Panels: Target 7 million+ units (up ~10% YoY from mid-6M in 2025). Focus on gaming monitors where "steep growth" is expected.
Smartphone Panels: Target exceeds last year's growth rate (FY25: mid-70M units). First half/second half seasonality gap narrowing.
CAPEX: ₩2 trillion level (up from ₩1.5T in 2025), focused on OLED technological competitiveness and future readiness.
IT OLED (8.6 Gen): Company is monitoring but not yet committing to 8.6 gen investment. "Insufficient visibility into demand" and high external uncertainties cited.
Ask Fintool AI AgentHow Did the Stock React?
LPL shares closed at $4.36 on January 27, 2026 (the day before earnings), down 0.9% on the day. The stock has traded in a range of $2.43 to $5.67 over the past 52 weeks.
*Values retrieved from S&P Global
The transformation story is reflected in the price action: LPL hit its 52-week low of $2.43 in early 2024 during the deepest losses but has recovered as OLED profitability improved, reaching highs near $5.67 in late 2024.
What Are the Key Risks and Concerns?
1. Memory Semiconductor Price Pressure Rising DRAM/NAND prices could (a) dampen IT set demand by raising end-product prices and (b) create customer pressure to lower panel prices to offset component cost increases. Company is "carefully monitoring."
2. 8.6 Gen IT OLED Decision Delayed While competitors are investing in 8.6 gen IT OLED capacity, LG Display is holding back due to demand uncertainty. This could result in allocation disadvantages with key customers.
3. Tariff and Trade Environment Management flagged proactive adjustments to overseas production strategies in response to "changes in trade and tariff environment."
4. LCD Profitability Still Challenged IT LCD business is improving but turnaround "visibility" targeted for 2026. Not all businesses are yet profitable.
Q&A Highlights
On First-Half Profitability Concerns:
"What is important and fundamental to the company is that, first of all, we need to keep growing, and second, we need to be steadfastly profitable every quarter... Whereas in the past [our efforts were] more for survival, now it is more about improving our competitiveness." — CFO Kim Seong-hyun
On 8.6 Gen IT OLED Investment:
"There is still insufficient visibility into demand to justify an 8.6 gen investment decision. External uncertainties remain high that could also affect demand. For now, the company intends to monitor market conditions before making investment decisions."
On Large OLED Market Outlook:
"The high-end market that we are targeting with OLED maintains a 10% share of the overall market... The target for panel shipment in 2026 is set at just over 7 million to grow by around 10% YoY."
Forward Catalysts
Ask Fintool AI AgentThe Bottom Line
LG Display's Q4 2025 results mark a genuine inflection point. The company achieved its first profitable year in four years, OLED revenue share hit a record 61%, and debt is declining materially. The ~₩370 billion in one-time charges obscured what management called an adjusted operating profit that "exceeded market expectations."
The key question now: Can LG Display sustain quarterly profitability through seasonal weakness (Q1) and competitive intensity (8.6 gen OLED decisions)? Management's answer: focus has shifted from survival to competitiveness, with ₩2 trillion in CAPEX earmarked for OLED expansion.
Bull Case: OLED transformation is working, financial health improving, premium display demand holds.
Bear Case: 8.6 gen delay creates competitive risk, memory prices pressure margins, macro uncertainty persists.
Sources: LG Display Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript (January 28, 2026), S&P Global Market Intelligence