SK Telecom and DraftKings have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – March 30, 2026 – Zacks Equity Research shares SK Telecom SKM as the Bull of the Day and DraftKings DKNG as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on —Exxon Mobil Corporation XOM, ConocoPhillips COP and EOG Resources, Inc. EOG.

Here is a synopsis of all three stocks:

Bull of the Day:

South Korea: An AI Powerhouse in the Making

In the global, cutthroat race for artificial intelligence domination, the United States and China garner the most attention due to their sheer size and long history of technological advancement. However, it would be a mistake for investors to overlook South Korea.

In fact, South Korea has all the ingredients necessary to be a top player in the AI revolution, including manufacturing prowess (SK has the highest density of industrial robots in the world), semiconductor dominance (Samsung, SK Hynix), and a strong consumer electronics ecosystem/infrastructure that can be used to run AI applications. Additionally, the South Korean government has approved a sizable $71.5B investment through 2030 to ensure South Korea becomes a dominant player in the race for AI supremacy.

SK Telecom: The South Korean AI Leader

With a market share of ~50% and 23 million clients,SK Telecom is South Korea’s largest telecommunications company. Similar to AT&T, SKM is a leader in wireless, 5G, internet, and IoT services. However, unlike most legacy telecom companies which are content to grow slowly and generate predictable cash flow, SKM is transforming into an AI powerhouse. The company has three main AI verticals, including:

· Infrastructure: SKM builds and operates the AI data centers required to train complex AI models.

· In-House AI Optimization: SKM is leveraging AI in-house to optimize its mobile traffic and contact centers for enterprise clients.

· Agentic AI: SKM is an early Agentic AI leader. Its flagship AI agent, A-Dot, is a personal assistant that can handle everything from real-time translation to sleep tracking. Recently, NVIDIACEO Jensen Huang called Agentic AI a “multi-trillion-dollar opportunity.”

SKM: Early Anthropic Investor

In addition to its in-house AI efforts, SK Telecom made one of the most astute and timely private AI investments among publicly traded companies. In 2023, SKM invested $100 million into AI start-up Anthropic. At the time, Anthropic’s valuation was ~$5 billion. Since then, Anthropic has released several groundbreaking products while its valuation has swelled to ~$380 billion!

Today, SKM’s stake is likely to be valued at ~$2 billion. With a valuation of $11.54 billion total, SKM’s Anthropic investment should move the needle. Meanwhile, recent activity suggests that Anthropic is targeting an IPO date in the second half of 2026. Should the IPO occur, it will be one of the most anticipated IPOs in years and will likely drive its valuation even higher (thus, increasing SKM’s stake).

SK Telecom: Wall Street Is Bullish

SKM earns a best-possible Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Meanwhile, Wall Street expects its YoY EPS growth rate to explode to 283.10% in 2026.

SKM: Bullish Price Action

While many domestic AI stocks have succumbed to market volatility, SKM shares have outperformed, registering gains of 40.6% YTD versus the S&P 500’s -5.1%.

SKM shares currently offer investors a juicy reward-to-risk setup as they pull back uniformly to the rising 50-day moving average.

Bottom Line

South Korea is an AI-first nation capable of competing on the technological world stage. Between its AI-first mindset and its prudent Anthropic investment, SKM is an AI leader in the making.

Bear of the Day:

Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) stock DraftKings is a leading digital sports entertainment, gaming, and sports betting company. The Boston, MA-based firm was created to “fuel the competitive spirits of sports fans with products that range across daily fantasy, regulated gaming, and digital media. DraftKings is the only U.S. based, vertically integrated sports betting operators.

With regulatory approval in 26 states and Washington, D.C., the multi-channel provider of sports betting and gaming technology powers sports and gaming entertainment for 50 operators. DraftKings is the official daily fantasy partner of the NFL, MLB, and the PGA Tour. Additionally, DKNG is an authorized gaming operator of the NBA MLB, and the official betting operator of the PGA Tour.

DraftKings Duopoly is Ending

Combined, DraftKings and FanDuel, which is part of Flutter Entertainment (FLUT), dominate and comprise nearly 2/3s of the U.S. online sports betting market. However, prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi have gained immense popularity and are likely to challenge the DKNG/FLUT duopoly, capturing market share and compressing margins. Although DKNG gross margins have bounced recently, they have compressed from a high of 47% in 2021 to 41% today.

Beyond rapidly increasing competition, tax risks are arising for DKNG. For instance, in New York, DKNG’s largest market by revenue, there is a proposal for a 51% tax, which would negatively impact profitability.

DKNG Falls Short of Wall Street Expectations

Wall Street is a game of expectations, and lately, DraftKings has fallen short. DKNG has missed Zacks Consensus Estimates for six consecutive quarters. Over the past 4 quarters, the company has missed Zacks Consensus Analyst Estimates by a margin of 19.25%.

Meanwhile, several Wall Street analysts tracked by Zacks Investment Research have recently lowered EPS expectations for 2026 and 2027.

DKNG Technical: Relative Price Weakness & Bear Flag

Over the past year, DKNG shares have exhibited troubling relative price performance, plunging 29% while the S&P 500 has gained 26%.

After DKNG staged a brief rally, shares recently bumped their head on the declining 10-week moving average and broke lower.. Additionally, selling volume (red bars) has dominated accumulation volume.

Bottom Line

With the emergence of new competition, DraftKings’ sports betting duopoly is coming to an end. Earnings expectations are trending lower, the technicals are deteriorating, and margins are likely to narrow.

Additional content:

Exxon Mobil Corporation is a leading oil and gas company with a global presence and a portfolio of high-quality assets that support its earnings and profitability. The company is expected to benefit from the sharp surge in oil prices due to escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. The conflict between the United States and Iran in the Middle East has caused supply disruptions and pushed the benchmark Brent crude price above $100 per barrel.

While this conflict has raised energy shortage concerns for the global economy, the rise in oil prices is expected to benefit exploration and production players like ExxonMobil. The company continues to expand upstream production from its low-cost, high-return assets, which include Guyana and the Permian.

ExxonMobil has projected its upstream production to reach approximately 4.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2026 and nearly 5.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2030. Increasing production from its advantaged assets with low-breakeven costs in a favorable commodity price environment will enable the company to raise its earnings and profitability.

ExxonMobil maintains a strong balance sheet that enables it to sail through volatile business cycles with ease. XOM has a debt-to-capitalization ratio of 11.38%, which is significantly lower than the industry average. Its strong financial position enables XOM to navigate market cycles and continue investing in its growth.

Other Industry Majors with a Low-Cost Production Profile

ConocoPhillips and EOG Resources, Inc.  are two other energy firms that boast a low-cost resource base in the shale basins of the United States.

ConocoPhillips is involved in the exploration and production of crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), bitumen and natural gas. The company boasts a strong asset base in the shale basins of the United States, including the Delaware Basin, Midland Basin, Eagle Ford and Bakken shale. These assets support low-cost production, which enables ConocoPhillips to maintain its profitability and generate free cash flow even during periods of low oil prices.

EOG Resourcesis a leading independent exploration and production company with operations focused on the prolific acres in the United States, as well as several resource-rich international basins. EOG boasts a high-return, low-decline asset base and stands out among the low-cost producers in the United States. The company’s focus on maintaining a resilient balance sheet and lowering production costs should enable it to weather oil price volatility.

XOM’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates

Shares of ExxonMobil have risen 44.4% over the past year compared with the 35.5% improvement of the composite stocks belonging to the industry.

From a valuation standpoint, XOM trades at a trailing 12-month enterprise value to EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) of 10.64X. This is above the broader industry average of 6.71X.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for XOM’s 2026 earnings has seen upward revisions over the past seven days.

XOM, COP and EOG each currently carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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