SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest
by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets DailySK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM – Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 1,655,786 shares, a decline of 49.6% from the September 15th total of 3,283,903 shares. Currently, 0.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 979,715 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.7 days.
Institutional Trading of SK Telecom
Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Matthews International Capital Management LLC boosted its position in SK Telecom by 33.5% during the first quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 3,326 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 835 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in SK Telecom by 69.7% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,853 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in SK Telecom by 11.3% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,990 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in SK Telecom in the first quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in SK Telecom by 26.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,202 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares in the last quarter.
SK Telecom Stock Down 2.2%
Shares of SKM stock traded down $0.76 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $33.66. The stock had a trading volume of 807,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,022,438. SK Telecom has a 12-month low of $19.66 and a 12-month high of $47.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.94 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $36.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.22.
SK Telecom (NYSE:SKM – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. SK Telecom had a return on equity of 5.30% and a net margin of 4.23%. On average, analysts predict that SK Telecom will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Analyst Ratings Changes
SKM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of SK Telecom from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research raised shares of SK Telecom from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of SK Telecom from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded SK Telecom from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on SKM
About SK Telecom
SK Telecom Co, Ltd. is a South Korean telecommunications company and a member of the SK Group. Headquartered in Seoul, the company provides mobile communications services, including voice, messaging, wireless data, 5G connectivity and related subscription services, primarily in South Korea.
Through its affiliates and business operations, SK Telecom also offers fixed-line broadband internet, internet protocol television and media services. Its enterprise portfolio includes cloud computing, data center services, information and communication technology solutions, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things services for businesses and public-sector customers.
The company traces its origins to Korea Mobile Telecommunications, established in 1984, and adopted the SK Telecom name in 1998 following its incorporation into the SK Group.