KT Corp posts W505.3b operating profit in Q3 as recovery gains pace

KT Corp has entered a clear recovery phase after suffering a cyberattack last year, with its AI transformation strategy — known as AX — now moving into full swing under Park Yun-young's leadership.

Contributions from group subsidiaries in real estate and data centers helped push the company's consolidated operating profit above 500 billion won in the third quarter.

KT Corp posted consolidated sales of 6.9975 trillion won and operating profit of 505.3 billion won ($372 million) for the third quarter, according to Korea Exchange data released Tuesday. Operating profit declined due to a base effect from a customer compensation program launched late last year and pre-sale gains from the Gwangjin-gu development project, but earnings from real estate and data center subsidiaries offset those headwinds.

Service revenue from the wireless business fell 3.9 percent year-on-year, reflecting the impact of the customer reward program. The share of 5G subscribers reached 83.5 percent of total handset subscribers at the end of the third quarter.

Fixed-line revenue declined year-on-year, weighed down by falling home landline revenue and lower advertising and pay-per-view sales in the media business. Broadband internet and IPTV subscribers grew 1.4 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively, compared with the same period last year.

KT Corp is accelerating its AX business this year through AI infrastructure supply and the commercialization of new AI services. The company plans to expand its AI data center capacity to more than 1 gigawatt by 2031, with six new data centers opening in stages — starting with Bucheon Centers 1 and 2 in 2027, followed by Gaebong, Gunsan and Yongin in 2028, and Ansan in 2029.

The company also plans to add more than 90 terabits per second of submarine cable capacity and diversify its cable landing station network — currently centered on Busan — to cover Jeju and the southwestern and southeastern regions. KT Corp intends to link its roughly 3,500 nationwide exchange facilities through to AI edge nodes, strengthening its AX infrastructure across AI data centers, global networks and the AI edge.

On Oct. 30, KT Corp launched KT Token Factory, a single platform offering AI model selection, cost management, and AI trust and safety features. Through a partnership with OpenRouter, a global AI model routing platform, the company plans to expand the number of available global AI models to more than 500.

KT Cloud sustained steady sales growth in the third quarter, driven by its core data center and cloud businesses.

KT Estate saw third-quarter sales rise 39.1 percent year-on-year, boosted by its Daejeon Dunsan pre-sale project and growth in hotel and rental operations. With the Daejeon Dunsan project continuing to contribute to earnings, the subsidiary is expanding its development pipeline to include prime locations such as Suwon Yeongtong and Chuncheon Hyoja.

Kbank posted a 119 percent year-on-year increase in net profit for the period in the third quarter. Its customer base grew by 1.91 million from a year earlier to 16.88 million. Outstanding loan balances surpassed 20 trillion won.

"The third quarter was a period in which we gave concrete shape to our AX growth strategy and sustained the momentum of our key subsidiaries, even amid shifting business conditions at home and abroad," said Min Hye-byeong, KT Corp's chief financial officer. "Going forward, we will work to restore profitability in our core telecommunications business and accelerate B2B and AX growth as we strive to become a leading AX platform company."