NEW YORK, Dec. 28, 2025, 1:21 a.m. ET — Market closed —
Coupang, Inc. (NYSE: CPNG) heads into the final full week of the year with its stock back in the spotlight after a sharp Friday rebound and a fresh weekend headline from its founder. Shares ended the last regular session at $24.27, up 6.45%, after trading between $24.25 and $25.38 on volume of about 30 million shares; the stock was around $24.42 in after-hours trading late Friday. [1]
The new catalyst landing as markets rest for the weekend: Coupang founder and chairman Bom Kim issued a public apology over the company’s recent customer data leak and said a compensation plan for South Korean customers would be announced “as soon as possible,” while pledging additional investments and reforms to prevent future incidents. [2]
What’s driving Coupang stock right now
The near-term story is simple: investors are repricing the “worst-case scenario” for a breach that initially spooked the market—while also weighing the longer tail risks of investigations, politics, and litigation.
In a company update posted Dec. 25, Coupang said its investigation indicates a perpetrator accessed roughly 33 million accounts but “retained limited user data” from only about 3,000 accounts and later deleted that data. Coupang also said the user data “included only 2,609 building entrance codes,” and that no payment data, login data, or individual customs numbers were accessed, adding it found no evidence the data was transferred to others. [3]
Coupang’s statement also names the heavyweight firms it says were brought in for forensic work: Mandiant, Palo Alto Networks, and Ernst & Young. [4]
That update helped change the tone on Friday. Investopedia reported CPNG was up about 9% during Friday trading after the company’s reassurance that sensitive payment information wasn’t compromised. [5]
The big unresolved issue: confirmation by authorities
Even as Coupang frames the incident as contained and now remediated, South Korean authorities have not fully signed off on the company’s claims—and that matters because most of Coupang’s business gravity is in South Korea.
Reuters reported that South Korea’s science ministry said the incident remained under investigation and that Coupang’s claims had not been confirmed by authorities, while also criticizing Coupang for “unilateral disclosure” during an ongoing probe. [6]
In his weekend statement, Kim said Coupang is cooperating with the government investigation and reiterated that data from 3,000 customers was saved on a suspect’s personal computer but was not transferred or sold. [7]
Political and regulatory pressure remains a headline risk
Coupang’s breach has become politically radioactive in South Korea—one of those situations where the stock may trade on headlines as much as on spreadsheets.
Reuters has reported that South Korean lawmakers have criticized Kim for not attending parliamentary hearings, and that lawmakers are seeking legal action tied to claims about where Coupang earns most of its revenue (South Korea) relative to its U.S. listing. [8]
Separately, Reuters reported that South Korea’s National Tax Service was conducting a special audit of Coupang following the data leak, according to Yonhap, and that the audit involves transactions between the South Korean unit and the New York–listed parent. [9]
Litigation overhang: U.S. investor class action
Beyond consumer and regulator fallout, there’s also a U.S. capital markets angle.
Reuters reported a U.S. securities class action was filed in federal court in California alleging Coupang, Bom Kim, and CFO Gaurav Anand misled investors about cybersecurity practices and disclosure timing connected to the breach. [10]
Meanwhile, law firm notices published over the past two days have pointed to a Feb. 17, 2026 lead-plaintiff deadline (these are not court filings themselves, but they reflect the typical litigation timeline investors may see referenced in headlines). [11]
Wall Street forecasts and price targets: what analysts are modeling
With the stock still digesting breach-related uncertainty, analyst notes and consensus targets are increasingly framing the debate as: Does this become a lasting operational drag, or mostly a one-time (but expensive) storm?
One of the clearest, source-attributed updates in recent days comes from Morgan Stanley. According to TheFly via TipRanks, Morgan Stanley analyst Seyon Park lowered Coupang’s price target to $31 (from $35) while maintaining an Overweight rating, citing “heightened risk” after the breach and embedding higher cybersecurity spending—while still expecting minimal impact on operations. [12]
On the broader consensus picture:
- MarketBeat shows a $33.25 average price target across 11 analyst ratings, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” (high: $40, low: $27). [13]
- Investing.com’s consensus snapshot lists 16 analysts with an average $34.98 target (high: $40, low: $28.6) and an overall consensus labeled “Buy.” [14]
Those targets imply substantial upside from the latest close—but the important asterisk is that many of these targets were set before the latest weekend apology headline, and the market may reprice quickly if investigations, penalties, or consumer trust issues escalate.
If you’re watching CPNG for Monday, here’s what matters before the next session
Because U.S. markets are closed right now, the next real price discovery for Coupang stock will arrive at the open on Monday, Dec. 29—and the setup is unusually headline-sensitive. Here are the practical “know before the bell” items investors are likely to focus on:
1) Any official confirmation (or contradiction) from South Korean authorities.
Coupang’s narrative is “contained + deleted + no transfer,” while regulators have said key aspects are still unconfirmed. Any new official update could move the stock quickly. [15]
2) Details of the promised customer compensation plan.
Kim has pledged compensation “as soon as possible.” The size, structure, and eligibility of that plan could influence both consumer trust and near-term cost expectations. [16]
3) Litigation headlines and investor-risk framing.
The securities class action adds a separate track of uncertainty that can flare up around filings, deadlines, and commentary. [17]
4) Whether this becomes an earnings-and-margin story, not just a cyber story.
Analysts are already modeling higher cybersecurity spending. If investors start treating the breach as a persistent margin headwind (or as a one-time cleanup cost), that changes valuation psychology. [18]
5) The next major scheduled catalyst: earnings (estimated).
MarketBeat lists Coupang’s next earnings date as estimated Feb. 24, 2026 (after market close) based on past reporting patterns—an event where management would be expected to address ongoing investigation costs, security investments, and any demand impact in South Korea. [19]
Bottom line
Coupang stock is trying to stabilize after a breach-driven selloff, with Friday’s jump showing how fast sentiment can snap back when the perceived severity of a cyber incident is marked down. But the weekend apology—and the still-open questions from authorities—keep CPNG in a market regime where headlines can gap the stock as easily as fundamentals can grind it higher.
When trading resumes Monday, investors will likely be watching for whether the market treats the founder’s apology and promised compensation as a trust-rebuilding step… or as the start of a larger, costlier chapter of regulatory and legal scrutiny. [20]
References
1. stockanalysis.com, 2. www.reuters.com, 3. www.aboutcoupang.com, 4. www.aboutcoupang.com, 5. www.investopedia.com, 6. www.reuters.com, 7. www.reuters.com, 8. www.reuters.com, 9. www.reuters.com, 10. www.reuters.com, 11. www.globenewswire.com, 12. www.tipranks.com, 13. www.marketbeat.com, 14. www.investing.com, 15. www.reuters.com, 16. www.reuters.com, 17. www.reuters.com, 18. www.tipranks.com, 19. www.marketbeat.com, 20. www.reuters.com
