Global investment bank JP Morgan assessed that SK hynix has secured leadership in high bandwidth memory (HBM), a core semiconductor for artificial intelligence (AI). Macquarie noted that SK hynix has risen above Samsung Electronics to become the top memory semiconductor corporation.

According to the financial investment industry on the 24th, JP Morgan raised its investment opinion on SK hynix to 'overweight' and adjusted the target price upward from 210,000 won to 280,000 won.

On Nov. 23, the appearance of SK hynix headquarters in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency
On Nov. 23, the appearance of SK hynix headquarters in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency

JP Morgan stated that it expects demand to increase due to the smooth enhancement of SK hynix's technology, presenting a rare positive outlook for the HBM business amid a slowdown cycle in memory semiconductors. They mentioned that while the general memory semiconductor market may enter a more severe adjustment due to prolonged inventory depletion, SK hynix is anticipated to offset the weakness in general memory semiconductors as the share of HBM in sales grows.

After announcing its management results for the fourth quarter of last year (October to December) on the previous day, SK hynix noted during a conference call that "this year, HBM revenue is expected to increase by more than 100% compared to the previous year," adding, "We believe that the customer demand based on application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) will also increase significantly, expanding our customer base." They projected that the most profitable fifth-generation HBM (HBM3E) 12-layer product will account for more than 50% of shipments in the first half of this year.

JP Morgan observed that the price weakness of general memory semiconductors is being reflected in the stock price of SK hynix and believes that the market will focus on the growth potential of the HBM business after 2026. Considering this, JP Morgan explained that there is sufficient room for an increase in SK hynix's stock price. They raised the earnings per share (EPS) estimates for SK hynix by 2% and 10% for 2025 and 2026, respectively.

JP Morgan remarked, "SK hynix remains the most favored stock among the memory semiconductor corporations under analysis," recommending that investors accumulate SK hynix shares.

Macquarie also assessed that SK hynix has emerged as the largest DRAM manufacturer, surpassing Samsung Electronics. They maintained their investment opinion of 'overweight' and raised the target price to about 310,000 won, an increase of approximately 15%.

Macquarie stated, "Considering the demand for semiconductors related to AI inference and production capacity constraints, the supply shortage of HBM is expected to worsen and become prolonged from 2026 to 2027."