KT Target Price 44,000 Won... Expectation for K-Bank and Millie's Seoje IPO

[Asia Economy Reporter So-yeon Park] Samsung Securities maintained a target price of 44,000 KRW and a buy rating for KT.

According to FN Guide on the 2nd, Samsung Securities stated in a recent report, "KT is expected to expand its growth industries this year through stable profit improvement in wired and wireless businesses, corporate value re-evaluation following the IPOs of K-Bank and Millie’s Library, and partnerships."

Samsung Securities said, "This year, the wired and wireless businesses are expected to continue stable growth based on a high 5G penetration rate and ARPU," adding, "The subsidiary internet-only bank K-Bank and subscription-based reading platform Millie’s Library are preparing for IPOs this year, which is expected to enhance corporate value."

They continued, "Supported by shareholder-friendly policies and an upward trend in profits, a high dividend policy is also expected to continue, with a projected dividend yield of 6.1% for 2022."

Additionally, "At the beginning of the year, a business partnership was established through mutual share exchanges with Shinhan Financial Group," and "KT holds a telecommunications platform while Shinhan holds a financial platform, so synergy from cooperation is expected to expand business performance," they explained.

Shinhan and KT are expected to create new business models combining KT’s digital platform capabilities and Shinhan Bank’s financial expertise to target the market. For example, KT’s AI and robot solutions could be applied to Shinhan Bank’s innovative branch 'Digi-log,' where an AI banker currently serves customers, to enhance service completeness. Another plan under consideration is for Shinhan Bank to develop an alternative credit evaluation model based on location analysis data from KT’s commercial area information service platform 'Jalnagage.'