Market: KOSPI (017670)
Brokerage : Shinhan Securities
Analyst : Ah-ram Kim
Investment Rating : Trading BUY (Maintain)
Target Price : KRW 98,000 (Maintain)
Core Momentum : Operational earnings and dividend recovery driven by SK Broadband data center growth, combined with potential share price overshooting led by AI narratives through year-end.
📊 1. [Valuation & Key Financial Metrics]
- Investment Rating & Target Price: Trading BUY maintained, Target Price maintained at KRW 98,000 (Upside potential of 5.2% based on the May 7, 2026 closing price of KRW 93,200)
- 1Q26 Results Summary:
- Consolidated Operating Profit: KRW 537.6 Billion (-5.3% YoY, 5% above market consensus)
- Standalone (SKT) Operating Profit: KRW 409.5 Billion (Cost control bringing earnings close to pre-incident levels of KRW 436.4 Billion in 1Q24)
- SK Broadband Operating Profit: KRW 116.6 Billion (+21.0% YoY, record quarterly high driven by data center expansion and post-retirement labor cost savings)
- FY2026 Full-Year Forecast:
- Annual Revenue: KRW 17.647 Trillion
- Annual Operating Profit: KRW 1.904 Trillion (Recovering to pre-incident baseline)
- Annual Net Profit (Controlling Interests): KRW 1.109 Trillion
- 2026E EPS: KRW 5,165 / BPS: KRW 62,319 / ROE: 8.5% / PER: 18.0x / PBR: 1.5x / EV/EBITDA: 5.1x / DY: 3.6%
🚀 2. [Market Opportunities & Business Outlook]
- Operational Normalization & Dividend Visibility:
- Mobile handset subscriber net adds turned positive, signaling gradual recovery alongside disciplined standalone cost management.
- Management reaffirmed guidance during the earnings call to restore FY2026 operating profit to pre-incident levels and pay dividends comparable to previous normal years.
- SK Broadband Data Center Expansion:
- Data Center (DC) revenue surged +89.3% YoY, serving as the primary growth engine for consolidated profitability.
- Anthropic Valuation & AI Narrative Momentum:
- With Anthropic’s equity stake in focus, the stock’s defensive dividend profile has weakened, allowing the strength of the AI narrative to steer price action through year-end.
- While current market cap already reflects substantial equity value ($1.0–1.5 Trillion enterprise value priced in), rapid valuation gains (reports of additional funding at $800–900 Billion valuation) and favorable market sentiment leave room for potential price overshooting ahead of potential listing milestones toward year-end.
📝 Editor’s Comment (Perspective)
The analyst views SK Telecom as an operator confirming clear earnings and dividend normalization toward pre-incident KRW 1.9 Trillion levels through handset net adds and SK Broadband’s surging data center business, while shifting structurally into an AI-narrative-driven stock anchored by its Anthropic stake. Although the fundamental upside to the target price is narrow due to equity value being largely priced in, the perspective leaves open the potential for near-term momentum overshooting fueled by market enthusiasm surrounding potential Anthropic corporate milestones through year-end.
To evaluate whether this investment thesis materializes, key verification points include tracking whether handset net additions and cost control sustain annual operating profit at KRW 1.9 Trillion alongside normalized dividend distributions, confirming the durability of SK Broadband’s high double-digit DC revenue growth, and monitoring developments in Anthropic’s valuation and ongoing funding rounds. These developments can be verified via upcoming quarterly earnings announcements, official IR materials, and regular DART statutory filings.
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