SK Telecom (NYSE:SKM) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded the stock from a neutral rating to an overweight rating. The stock had previously closed at $32.26, but opened at $33.88. SK Telecom shares last traded at $32.9010, with a volume of 332,375 shares.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on SKM. Zacks Research upgraded shares of SK Telecom from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. HSBC raised SK Telecom from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings cut SK Telecom from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded SK Telecom from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SK Telecom

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in SK Telecom by 202.4% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 606,347 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $12,448,000 after purchasing an additional 405,863 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in shares of SK Telecom by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 2,462,769 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $50,561,000 after buying an additional 374,428 shares during the period. ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its position in shares of SK Telecom by 136.8% during the 1st quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 568,343 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $16,647,000 after buying an additional 328,300 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of SK Telecom by 80,378.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 328,353 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $6,741,000 after buying an additional 327,945 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of SK Telecom during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $9,065,000.

SK Telecom Stock Up 1.4%

The stock has a market cap of $12.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.54, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 0.63. The business’s 50 day moving average is $36.39 and its 200-day moving average is $31.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.18.

SK Telecom (NYSE:SKM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. SK Telecom had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 2.78%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that SK Telecom Co., Ltd. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SK Telecom Company Profile

SK Telecom Co, Ltd. (NYSE:SKM) is South Korea’s largest wireless carrier, offering a comprehensive range of mobile telecommunications services. The company operates 5G, 4G LTE and IoT networks, providing voice, data and messaging solutions to consumers and businesses. Beyond traditional wireless services, SK Telecom delivers fixed-line broadband, digital content platforms, cloud computing and cybersecurity offerings designed to support enterprise digital transformation and the growing demand for high-speed connectivity.

Established in 1984 as Korea Mobile Telecommunications Services, SK Telecom pioneered cellular service commercialization in South Korea and has continually expanded into new technology areas.