SK Telecom's net income rises 88 percent in the third quarter

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SK Telecom's net income rises 88 percent in the third quarter

Published: 10 Nov. 2021, 17:04

SK Telecom reported an 88 percent on-year rise in net profit in the third quarter as its investment in SK hynix performed well.

Net profit in the July-to-September period was 736.5 billion won ($622.8 million), short of the market consensus of 754.8 billion won compiled by FnGuide.

The majority of net profit came from the investment in SK hynix. SK Telecom owns 20 percent of SK hynix.

Revenue came in at 4.97 trillion won, up 5 percent, and operating profit was 400 billion won, up 11.7 percent.

Both numbers beat the market consensus, which was 4.91 trillion won for revenue and 396.1 billion won for operating profit.

All units reported gains this quarter, with growth in the legacy internet and network businesses as well as in the newer media, commerce and security businesses.

Mobile network revenue was 3.03 trillion won, up 2.9 percent higher on year.

This was attributed to the increase in the number of 5G subscribers, which jumped from 4.26 million at the end of September last year to 8.65 million as of September this year.

5G subscriber numbers were up 12.4 percent on quarter and total subscribers were down 0.1 percent. Average revenue per user was up 2.1 percent on year. At 30,669, it was below the level hit in the first quarter of 2020.

SK Broadband added 115,000 new subscribers to its IPTV service to total 8.91 million users during the third quarter. Broadband revenue was 1.02 trillion won, up 2.7 percent.

Additional paid users subscribing to Wavve also helped, SK Telecom said, but the company did not disclose the revenue or number of users.

The safety and care (S&C) unit, which includes the company’s SK shieldus home security subsidiary, reported 397 billion won of revenue, up 12.4 percent.

Commerce achieve 209.5 billion won in revenue, up 1.4 percent. SK Telecom recently began its T Universe subscription service, which gives discounts at 11st’s Amazon Global Store and for brands in Korea.

Commerce reported an 11.9 billion won loss, dragged down by intense competition.

SK Telecom split from SK Square on Nov. 1, signaling a new beginning for both the telecom company and the newly-founded SK Square investment company.

SK Telecom is aiming for sales of 22 trillion won by 2025. In 2020, the company logged 18.6 trillion won in revenue, up 5 percent on year.

SK Square will focus on mergers and acquisitions in semiconductors and related businesses. Investments will be directed toward companies involved in semiconductors, media, security services and online shopping.

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]