Market: KOSPI (017670)
Brokerage : SK Securities
Analyst : Kwan-soon Choi
Investment Rating : BUY (Maintain)
Target Price : KRW 110,000 (Maintain)
Core Momentum : Earnings and dividend normalization driven by the elimination of one-off cost overhangs, coupled with a long-term AIDC expansion roadmap backed by SK Group synergies.
📊 1. [Valuation & Key Financial Metrics]
- Rating & Target Price: BUY rating maintained, Target Price maintained at KRW 110,000 (Upside potential of 31.1% from the base date price of KRW 83,900)
- 2Q26 Earnings Forecast:
- Revenue: KRW 4.438 Trillion (+2.3% YoY)
- Operating Profit: KRW 539.0 Billion (+59.3% YoY, OPM 12.1%)
- Net Profit (Controlling Interests): KRW 357.0 Billion
- Estimated 2Q Dividend Per Share (DPS): KRW 830
- FY2026 Full-Year Forecast:
- Annual Revenue: KRW 17.857 Trillion
- Annual Operating Profit: KRW 1.930 Trillion (+79.8% YoY, OPM 10.8%)
- Annual Net Profit (Controlling Interests): KRW 1.221 Trillion
- Estimated FY2026 DPS: KRW 3,540 (Projected to fully normalize to FY2024 levels)
🚀 2. [Market Opportunities & Business Outlook]
- Cost Normalization & Stable Base: Resolution of approximately KRW 250 Billion in one-off expenses (SIM card replacements, dealer compensations) associated with the previous year’s cyber security incident, restoring underlying operational profitability.
- Subsidiary Contribution: SK Broadband is projected to deliver 2Q26 Operating Profit of KRW 110.9 Billion (+20.8% YoY), driven by consistent growth in broadband subscriptions and expanding data center revenue.
- Long-Term AIDC Growth Roadmap:
- SK Broadband: Expanding capacity at Ulsan and Guro data centers to achieve over 300MW capacity and more than KRW 1 Trillion in data center revenue by 2030.
- SK Telecom: Planning a phased commercial rollout of a 5GW data center starting in 2029, with plans to scale capacity up to 15GW by 2035 upon demand validation.
- Group Synergy: Leveraging integrated capabilities across SK Group affiliates to secure long-term demand from global Big Tech enterprises.
📝 Editor’s Comment (Perspective)
The analyst views SK Telecom as an infrastructure provider transitioning from a temporary security incident overhang back into high-visibility cash generation and dividend normalization, while establishing a structural growth foundation in hyperscale AIDC leveraging SK Group synergies. This perspective places strategic importance not just on short-term margin recovery, but on long-term AI infrastructure readiness.
To evaluate whether this investment thesis unfolds as anticipated, key verification points include tracking the delivery of stable quarterly margins alongside the targeted KRW 3,540 full-year DPS, as well as monitoring tangible milestones in the data center expansion timeline—specifically SK Broadband’s 300MW progress and the customer onboarding pipeline for the planned 5GW to 15GW rollout. These developments can be monitored through upcoming quarterly earnings releases, official IR presentations, and regular DART statutory filings.
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