SK

Business Overview

SK Inc. was established as a holding company in 2015 through the merger of SK C&C into SK Corporation, and holds subsidiaries including SK hynix, SK Telecom, SK Innovation, SK Square, SK Networks, SKC, SK Biopharmaceuticals, and SK Ecoplant (2025 Business Report, Status of Equity Investments in Other Companies, as of 2025-12-31). The number of subsidiaries is cited as 577, but cross-referencing against the primary source is not available (search summary, date unspecified). SK Inc. has designated advanced materials, green, bio, and digital as its four core growth areas and has invested in companies such as SES AI, Yes Power Technics, and Signet EV, though details on investment timing and amounts are not available.

SK Square holds a 20.1% stake in SK hynix (as of the same reference date), and under SK Innovation are SK On (90.3%), SK Energy (100.0%), SK Geocentric (100.0%), and others. SK E&S was merged into SK Innovation on 2024-11-01 and is no longer listed as a separate investee (cross-checked via news reports; original DART disclosure not reviewed).

5-Year Financial Trend

Q1 2026 is reported to have shown revenue growth of +18.9% and operating profit growth of +1301.1% year-over-year, but absolute figures are not available (search summary). SK Inc.'s own (consolidated) Q2 2026 results are scheduled for release on 2026-08-19 and are not yet available as of the reference date (Investing.com earnings calendar). The table above is estimated on a consolidated basis and has not been cross-checked against the primary source (DART Business Report).

Valuation (Factual Multiples)

PER and PBR figures vary across sources (per valueline.co.kr: PER 14.04x, PBR 1.25x; reliability of the stated reference date is low). The discrepancy is presumed to stem from differences between standalone/consolidated basis and calculation timing; a single confirmed figure is not available. EV/EBITDA is also not available.

Holding Company Comparison

Hanwha, SK, Samsung C&T, and LG—each with a discount of 50% or more—are cited as having relatively larger discounts. Per SK's disclosure, its minimum dividend is KRW 5,000 per share (Hanwha's is KRW 1,000 per share). A quantitative five-year comparison across peers and individual PER/PBR figures are not available.

Corporate Governance

Chairman Chey Tae-won's stake was reported at 25.60% on 2024-08-13 and, after minor fluctuations, was reported at 25.66% on 2026-05-19 (reasons cited: changes in special related parties and contract amendments). Minority shareholders numbered 146,341, accounting for 99.97% of all shareholders (as of 2025-12-31; details on the relative ratio are not available due to differences in how the share-count base was calculated).

Of the 8 registered directors, 5 are outside directors, a ratio of 62.5% (2025 Business Report, executive status). SK Inc. finalized a contract on 2026-07-31 to sell a 70.61% stake in SK Siltron to Doosan for KRW 2.3 trillion (the remaining 29.39% stake held personally by Chairman Chey Tae-won is to be negotiated separately). On 2026-07-24, the Seoul High Court's remand retrial ordered Chairman Chey Tae-won to pay Roh So-young KRW 944.0 billion in cash (property division ratio of 2/3 to 1/3); as of 2026-08-07, no disclosure of a large-scale share disposal under Chairman Chey Tae-won's name related to this matter has been confirmed.

Fund Flows

In the first half of the window (early-to-mid July), foreign investor flows were predominantly net inflows, but this shifted to net outflows in the latter half (late July) before returning to net inflows in early August. Retail investor flows recorded net outflows on 15 of the 22 trading days in this period. The short-selling balance ratio stood at 0.03% (as of 2026-08-04, pykrx estimate), a negligible level relative to shares outstanding. Short-selling volume ratio, foreign ownership limit utilization, and margin loan balance are not available.

Macro Environment

Memory semiconductor market conditions (SK hynix earnings) and the KRW/USD exchange rate are identified as the macro variables with the greatest impact on SK Inc.'s consolidated earnings. Domestic and international base rate hikes and pauses affect the financing costs of subsidiaries' (SK On, SK E&S, etc.) large-scale capital investments. US semiconductor trade policy (Section 232, warnings of high tariffs absent US investment) is classified as a potential downside factor, and the extent to which it is currently reflected in earnings is not available. The latest August 2026 figures for WTI crude prices, refining margins, and lithium carbonate prices are either conflicting across sources or not available.

Recent Developments

Risk Factors

SK Group's earnings are structurally concentrated in SK hynix (cited in past reports as accounting for roughly 75% of group earnings, though the most recent ratio is not available). SK hynix has cited its own risk factors as: the possibility of a sharp deterioration in HBM-centered results if AI infrastructure investment slows; revenue concentration among a small number of customers (e.g., Nvidia); tariffs and export controls stemming from US-China trade tensions (as of 2025, revenue concentrated 68.8% in the US and 19.7% in China); and memory market volatility (with a precedent of an operating loss of KRW 7.7303 trillion in 2023) (Hankyung, 2026-06-25). SK On has posted losses for multiple consecutive quarters since its launch, and SK Innovation's total liabilities grew from KRW 23.0 trillion in 2020 to KRW 70.7 trillion in 2024, recording a debt ratio of 177% at the end of 2024 (reported as of 2024; the latest 2026 figures are not available). SK Inc.'s long-term credit rating is cited as AA+ (stable), but cross-referencing against the primary source is not available. The 2026-03-10 treasury share retirement resolution is expected to result in an outflow of approximately KRW 4.8343 trillion in capital, and if the discount to NAV (approximately 59.0%) persists structurally, the market cap's undervaluation may continue.