Short Interest in SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM) Expands By 25.0%

SK Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:SKM) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,060,000 shares, an increase of 25.0% from the February 13th total of 847,900 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 257,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on SKM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded SK Telecom from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group began coverage on shares of SK Telecom in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of SK Telecom from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

SK Telecom Price Performance

Shares of SKM stock traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $21.52. 273,534 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 245,965. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $21.63 and a 200 day moving average of $22.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. SK Telecom has a 52-week low of $19.88 and a 52-week high of $24.58. The company has a market cap of $8.48 billion, a PE ratio of 8.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.77.

SK Telecom (NYSE:SKM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. SK Telecom had a net margin of 7.26% and a return on equity of 10.39%. Research analysts anticipate that SK Telecom will post 2.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SK Telecom

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SKM. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SK Telecom by 57.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,949 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,078 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of SK Telecom by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,292 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 3,324 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of SK Telecom by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 97,156 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 26,206 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of SK Telecom by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 62,990 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC raised its position in shares of SK Telecom by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 22,603 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $537,000 after purchasing an additional 3,692 shares during the last quarter.

About SK Telecom

SK Telecom Co, Ltd. provides wireless telecommunication services in South Korea. The company operates through three segments: Cellular Services, Fixed-Line Telecommunications Services, and Other Businesses. The Cellular Services segment offers wireless voice and data transmission, Internet of Things solutions, platform, cloud, smart factory solutions, subscription, advertising and curated shopping under T Deal brand name, and metaverse platform-based services, as well as sells wireless devices.