POSCO Holdings Inc. (PKX) Key Metrics
PKX key metrics, 2016–2025
Fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 · South Korean wonPKX returns How much profit the business earns on the capital it uses.
PKX financial health Debt, liquidity and how easily interest is covered.
PKX efficiency & capital use Working capital cycle and where the cash goes.
PKX returns on capital
Net income (ROE, ROA) or after-tax operating income (ROIC) divided by the average of the opening and closing balance.
PKX debt vs cash
Debt includes short- and long-term borrowings and, where reported, lease liabilities.
PKX cash returned to shareholders
PKX key metrics in South Korean won
2016–2025| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Returns & profitability | ||||||||||
| Return on equity (ROE) | 1.2% | 2.0% | 3.0% | 5.8% | 13.5% | 3.4% | 3.9% | 3.6% | 6.0% | 3.0% |
| Return on invested capital (ROIC) | 1.4% | 3.0% | 4.0% | 7.8% | 13.8% | 4.3% | 4.7% | 5.3% | 5.5% | 3.4% |
| Return on assets (ROA) | 0.7% | 1.1% | 1.7% | 3.3% | 7.7% | 2.0% | 2.3% | 2.1% | 3.5% | 1.7% |
| Return on tangible assets | 0.7% | 1.1% | 1.8% | 3.4% | 7.5% | 2.1% | 2.5% | 2.3% | 3.8% | 1.8% |
| Free cash flow margin | −2.4% | −2.1% | −1.4% | 0.9% | 3.6% | 9.0% | 5.0% | 5.1% | 4.9% | 5.3% |
| Income quality (OCF / net income) | 6.62 | 6.09 | 3.63 | 1.97 | 0.95 | 5.42 | 3.27 | 3.47 | 2.01 | 3.87 |
| Financial health | ||||||||||
| Total debt | ₩28.53T | ₩25.58T | ₩25.90T | ₩25.13T | ₩21.53T | ₩20.99T | ₩21.12T | ₩20.30T | ₩21.16T | ₩22.82T |
| Cash & short-term investments | ₩15.59T | ₩14.80T | ₩17.91T | ₩18.74T | ₩18.16T | ₩16.46T | ₩12.46T | ₩10.68T | ₩9.66T | ₩7.62T |
| Net debt | ₩12.94T | ₩10.78T | ₩8.00T | ₩6.39T | ₩3.37T | ₩4.53T | ₩8.65T | ₩9.63T | ₩11.50T | ₩15.20T |
| Debt / equity | 0.51 | 0.46 | 0.48 | 0.43 | 0.43 | 0.44 | 0.44 | 0.43 | 0.45 | 0.50 |
| Debt / assets | 0.27 | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.26 | 0.23 | 0.27 | 0.27 | 0.26 | 0.27 | 0.29 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 2.02 | 1.76 | 1.13 | 0.75 | 0.26 | 0.76 | 1.19 | 1.10 | 1.45 | 2.51 |
| Current ratio | 1.89 | 1.94 | 2.08 | 2.05 | 2.23 | 2.13 | 2.13 | 1.78 | 1.64 | 1.55 |
| Quick ratio | 1.29 | 1.31 | 1.43 | 1.39 | 1.47 | 1.59 | 1.47 | 1.17 | 1.12 | 1.07 |
| Interest coverage | 1.7 | 2.2 | 3.7 | 8.8 | 21.0 | 4.3 | 5.3 | 7.1 | 7.1 | 4.1 |
| Working capital | ₩20.51T | ₩21.32T | ₩24.26T | ₩24.46T | ₩26.15T | ₩18.98T | ₩18.52T | ₩14.71T | ₩12.18T | ₩10.39T |
| Invested capital | ₩68.70T | ₩66.17T | ₩62.14T | ₩64.65T | ₩53.75T | ₩52.20T | ₩56.45T | ₩56.39T | ₩58.96T | ₩61.03T |
| Tangible asset value | ₩57.13T | ₩56.87T | ₩55.06T | ₩53.60T | ₩50.61T | ₩43.28T | ₩42.96T | ₩41.78T | ₩41.72T | ₩39.91T |
| Net current asset value | ₩689.83B | ₩2.06T | ₩4.84T | ₩7.50T | ₩9.83T | ₩4.42T | ₩3.58T | ₩2.16T | −₩433.53B | −₩4.62T |
| Capital allocation | ||||||||||
| Dividends paid | ₩915.22B | ₩844.20B | ₩815.45B | ₩1.22T | ₩1.31T | ₩659.14B | ₩946.22B | ₩723.93B | ₩863.45B | ₩708.97B |
| Share buybacks (net) | ₩0 | ₩92.31B | ₩340.00B | ₩0 | ₩116.77B | ₩1.16T | ₩0 | ₩0 | ₩0 | ₩0 |
| Dividend payout ratio | 132.5% | 77.1% | 48.0% | 38.8% | 19.8% | 41.1% | 51.6% | 42.8% | 30.9% | 52.0% |
| Dividends + buybacks / free cash flow | — | — | — | 159.0% | 51.9% | 35.1% | 29.2% | 22.0% | 29.0% | 25.3% |
| Capex / revenue | 9.0% | 11.2% | 9.4% | 6.4% | 4.6% | 6.1% | 4.3% | 4.0% | 4.3% | 4.6% |
| Capex / operating cash flow | 136.5% | 122.5% | 117.2% | 87.6% | 56.1% | 40.3% | 46.1% | 44.0% | 46.9% | 46.7% |
| Capex / depreciation | 1.50 | 2.05 | 1.88 | 1.47 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.80 | 0.79 | 0.80 | 0.77 |
| Stock-based compensation / revenue | — | — | — | — | 0.4% | −0.0% | −1.4% | 0.7% | −0.1% | 0.5% |
| R&D / revenue | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 1.0% |
| SG&A / revenue | 3.7% | 3.4% | 3.0% | 2.6% | 2.8% | 3.2% | 3.0% | 3.0% | 5.1% | 6.0% |
| Efficiency | ||||||||||
| Days sales outstanding | 69.4 | 65.0 | 58.5 | 51.6 | 51.7 | 64.1 | 60.2 | 59.5 | 65.8 | 77.4 |
| Days of inventory on hand | 79.8 | 77.9 | 77.5 | 74.7 | 71.2 | 68.7 | 70.4 | 68.6 | 66.8 | 67.9 |
| Days payables outstanding | 41.6 | 40.0 | 35.9 | 31.8 | 29.0 | 27.5 | 28.4 | 29.0 | 32.3 | 35.5 |
| Cash conversion cycle (days) | 107.5 | 102.8 | 100.1 | 94.5 | 93.9 | 105.2 | 102.2 | 99.2 | 100.3 | 109.8 |
| Receivables turnover | 5.26 | 5.62 | 6.24 | 7.07 | 7.05 | 5.70 | 6.06 | 6.13 | 5.55 | 4.72 |
| Payables turnover | 8.77 | 9.11 | 10.18 | 11.47 | 12.57 | 13.25 | 12.85 | 12.60 | 11.29 | 10.27 |
| Inventory turnover | 4.57 | 4.68 | 4.71 | 4.89 | 5.13 | 5.32 | 5.19 | 5.32 | 5.46 | 5.37 |
| Asset turnover | 0.66 | 0.71 | 0.77 | 0.89 | 0.89 | 0.73 | 0.82 | 0.83 | 0.76 | 0.66 |
| Average receivables | ₩13.11T | ₩12.93T | ₩12.36T | ₩11.99T | ₩10.82T | ₩10.14T | ₩10.62T | ₩10.60T | ₩10.93T | ₩11.25T |
| Average payables | ₩7.28T | ₩7.38T | ₩6.95T | ₩6.72T | ₩5.13T | ₩4.01T | ₩4.52T | ₩4.53T | ₩4.60T | ₩4.52T |
| Average inventory | ₩13.96T | ₩14.37T | ₩15.01T | ₩15.78T | ₩12.57T | ₩9.99T | ₩11.21T | ₩10.73T | ₩9.50T | ₩8.64T |
| Intangibles / total assets | 5.0% | 4.4% | 4.5% | 4.7% | 4.4% | 5.6% | 6.1% | 6.4% | 7.3% | 7.4% |
Computed from PKX's annual financial statements (latest annual report filed April 29, 2026) and the closing share price on each fiscal year-end, adjusted for stock splits. Figures in South Korean won; data from EODHD. Averages use the opening and closing balance of each year.
PKX valuation and financial ratios
POSCO earned a return on equity of 1.2% and a return on invested capital of 1.4% in fiscal 2025. It ended the year with ₩28.53 trillion of debt and ₩15.59 trillion in cash and short-term investments, net debt of ₩12.94 trillion. It returned ₩915.2 billion to shareholders: ₩915.2 billion in dividends and ₩0 in share buybacks.
See the PKX income statement, the PKX chart for price history, or the PKX stock overview for the latest quote and news.
PKX key metrics FAQ
What is POSCO's return on equity?
POSCO's return on equity (ROE) was 1.2% in fiscal 2025: net income of ₩690.7 billion on average shareholders' equity of ₩55.57 trillion.
What is POSCO's ROIC?
POSCO's return on invested capital was 1.4% in fiscal 2025, using after-tax operating income divided by average debt plus equity minus cash.
How much debt does POSCO have?
POSCO had total debt of ₩28.53 trillion at the end of fiscal 2025, a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51 and ₩12.94 trillion of net debt (2.02 times EBITDA).
What is POSCO's current ratio?
POSCO's current ratio was 1.89 at the end of fiscal 2025: current assets were 1.89 times current liabilities.