With Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, which rank first and second in market capitalization on the domestic stock market, posting record first-quarter results this year, investors' concerns are deepening. That is because the question of how much to hold of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix continues.
According to the Korea Exchange (KRX) on the 26th, the share price of Samsung Electronics rose 13.67% from on the 7th, when earnings were released, to on the 24th. The stock climbed from 193,100 won on the 7th to 219,500 won.
On the 7th, Samsung Electronics reported blockbuster first-quarter results this year with revenue of 133 trillion won and operating profit of 57.2 trillion won. The stock rose 1.76% on the 7th alone, and the next day it jumped 7.12% as an additional boost came from a "two-week truce" agreement between the United States and Iran.
However, Samsung Electronics' rate of increase slightly lagged the overall KOSPI index growth rate of 18.81% over the same period. As geopolitical tensions in the Middle East eased, construction and nuclear power–related stocks showed strong growth.
By contrast, SK hynix, which released record results before the market opened on the 23rd, fell 0.08% over two days to on the 24th, from 1,223,000 won to 1,222,000 won.
On the 23rd, SK hynix disclosed that, on a consolidation basis, first-quarter operating profit this year was 3.76103 trillion won, up 405.5% from a year earlier. Revenue increased 198.1% to 5.25763 trillion won.
Although SK hynix also posted blockbuster results, it appears that expectations for the semiconductor industry were already priced in after Samsung Electronics' results were released, and with shares having already risen sharply, a "sell on" phenomenon (price decline amid good news) emerged even after strong earnings.
From on the 7th to on the 22nd, the day before the earnings release, SK hynix's rise reached 38.04%.
However, on the 23rd, the day of the earnings release, it rose only 0.16%, and on the 24th it ended down 0.24%.
It also seems to have been affected by the fact that SK hynix's results were not an "earnings surprise" that far exceeded what the securities industry expected. In the securities industry, there had been expectations of "first-quarter operating profit of 4 trillion won."
Now investors are likely to wrestle with whether to keep holding or buy more of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, or sell.
First, the securities industry is even betting that Samsung Electronics and SK hynix could achieve "300,000 electronics" and "2 million nyx." According to data compiled by financial information provider Yonhap Infomax, the target price for Samsung Electronics in reports from 12 brokerages over the past month was 250,000–330,000 won, and the target price for SK hynix from 19 brokerages was 1.3–2.05 million won.
Kim Hyeong-tae, an analyst at Shinhan Investment & Securities, said of Samsung Electronics, "It will likely be difficult to resolve memory undersupply through 2028," adding, "NAND price trends, which are a lower priority in expansion plans, could act as an upside variable for earnings."
Kim Dong-Won, head of research at KB Securities, set a target price of 2 million won for SK hynix, saying, "The upcycle in memory prices is expected to continue in the second half due to increased demand for server DRAM and enterprise SSDs driven by expanded investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure."