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

SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM)’s share 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 changing hands.

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

Institutional Trading of SK Telecom

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of SK Telecom during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in SK Telecom in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in SK Telecom by 138.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,701 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in SK Telecom in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC increased its stake in SK Telecom by 50.4% in the 4th quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 2,491 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 835 shares during the last quarter.

SK Telecom Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market cap of $11.79 billion, a PE ratio of 51.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 0.63.

SK Telecom (NYSE:SKM) last announced its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.98 billion. SK Telecom had a return on equity of 2.78% and a net margin of 2.03%. Analysts expect that SK Telecom Co., Ltd. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

About SK Telecom

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.