SK Telecom’s stock jumped 5.3% in pre-market trading following the release of its preliminary second-quarter results, which showed a massive 425% year-over-year surge in net profit attributable to shareholders.

Net income rose to 470.6 billion won from 89.6 billion won a year earlier, driven by the absence of one-time costs related to a 2025 cybersecurity breach and strong growth in the company’s artificial intelligence data center business. Revenue edged up 0.5% to 4.36 trillion won, with AI data center revenue climbing 92.5% year-over-year to 136.2 billion won.

Operating income also jumped 67% to 566 billion won, which the company attributed to profitability-focused management and the positive effects from last year’s USIM replacement costs that did not repeat. The strong earnings rebound and upbeat outlook on AI infrastructure boosted investor sentiment ahead of the regular session.