BTS, BLACKPINK’s hiatus leads to decline in CD sales; ‘Big Four’ agencies fails to leave an impact

Due to a drop in CD sales and the inactivity of top groups like BTS and BLACKPINK, the major K-pop agencies, also known as the Big Four—HYBE, YG Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and SM Entertainment—are expected to report low second-quarter earnings.

Leading K-pop groups like BLACKPINK and BTS have stopped performing, which has caused the K-pop market to collapse severely. The “Big Four” K-pop conglomerates—HYBE, SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, and JYP Entertainment—are reportedly expecting a significant drop in second-quarter earnings due to slow CD sales and the absence of high-performing acts like BTS and BLACKPINK.

The stock prices of the company have been impacted by a number of factors, including the ADOR controversy, poor performance of HYBE’s gaming subsidiary ASTRA, and the cost of production and promotion for new groups, despite significant comebacks from groups like TXT, NewJeans, and SEVENTEEN.

The prolonged absence of YG Entertainment’s top-performing group, BLACKPINK, is expected to have a significant negative impact on the company’s earnings as well. However, a rebound is anticipated when the girl group returns by 2025 and the company’s other big groups start making money from concerts.

Additionally, JYP Entertainment’s revenue and profit margins have been impacted by a notable drop in the number of people attending the concerts of its major groups, including TWICE, Stray Kids, and ITZY.

The target stock price for SM Entertainment is still the same. However, it is anticipated that revenue returns will be flat and that profit will trend lower.