Samsung Electronics delivered its biggest-ever quarterly results even after reflecting a special performance bonus provision. At the earnings conference call for the second quarter of 2026 held on the 30th, Samsung Electronics said revenue came to 171.5 trillion won and operating profit to 89.5 trillion won. That marked gains of 28% in revenue and 56% in operating profit from the previous quarter, achieved even after reflecting a special performance bonus provision equivalent to about 10.5% of cumulative operating profit for the first half.
As the industry expected, Samsung Electronics cited tailwinds such as solid demand for artificial intelligence (AI) memory and long-term agreements (LTA), but what drew the most attention was its comment that a turnaround to profit at the foundry division—which had recorded trillion-won losses every quarter—had grown closer. Unlike memory, whose results are driven by the demand-supply cycle, the shift is significant because, through business structure reorganization, it can change the company's fundamentals over the medium to long term. The company also expressed confidence in second-half results, presenting concrete figures such as a sharp rise in DRAM and NAND prices, expanded sales of HBM4 (sixth-generation HBM), and increased 2-nanometer orders.
◇ Record revenue and operating profit despite performance bonus provision
Park Sun-cheol, Samsung Electronics chief financial officer (vice president), said, "We set new all-time highs for both revenue and operating profit again, based on continued technology leadership centered on AI and quick responses to the market," adding, "Even as global economic volatility and geopolitical uncertainty persist, we proved our differentiated technological competitiveness built up in our core businesses." The company said it accrued a special performance bonus in the second quarter equivalent to about 10.5% of operating profit on a cumulative first-half basis. However, not all of the provision was recognized as an expense in the second-quarter income statement; it explained that the remainder capitalized as a manufacturing cost and labor cost natured asset will be recognized sequentially as cost of goods sold when the related inventory is sold.
Samsung Electronics said second-quarter average selling prices (ASP) for DRAM rose by the mid-40% range from the previous quarter, and NAND ASP by the high-60% range. Bit shipments for DRAM increased by the low-10% range from the previous quarter, beating guidance, while NAND grew by the low-single digits, in line with guidance. Both DRAM and NAND posted record-high bit shipments, and the share of server products also reached an all-time high. Kim Jae-jun, head of strategy and marketing at the memory business unit (vice president), said, "As AI data center investment expanded, additional supply requests continued, led by major hyperscalers."
Concrete results were presented in the HBM business as well. The company said, "Third-quarter HBM4 revenue will expand more than threefold from the previous quarter," and added, "In the second half, HBM4 revenue will comfortably exceed 60% of total HBM revenue." It continued, "By securing an HBM market share on par with our overall DRAM market share in the second half, we will be able to realize a balanced DRAM business portfolio." It also shipped HBM4E (seventh-generation HBM) samples to key customers for the first time in the industry.
Strong demand is expected to continue in the second half. Kim said, "Despite efforts to expand production, demand is growing faster," adding, "A shortage relative to demand will widen next year as well." The company also said AI frontier model developers are directly requesting memory purchases and long-term agreements without going through cloud providers. For the third quarter, it projected bit shipments to increase by the mid-single digits for DRAM and the high-single digits for NAND from the previous quarter.
◇ Foundry turnaround to profit "possible in the near term"… 2-nanometer orders double
The foundry division, which had been a "discount" factor on Samsung Electronics' results, also signaled a near-term turnaround to profit with newfound confidence. Samsung Electronics said, "Given the nature of the order-based industry, it is difficult to specify the exact timing," but added, "We expect it to be possible in the near term." Unlike memory, where results depend on market price fluctuations, a foundry turnaround to profit is seen as the outcome of reorganizing into an order-based business structure; once established, it can change the company's medium- to long-term revenue structure itself.
Kang Seok-chae, vice president of the foundry business unit, said, "In the second quarter, revenue increased on the back of memory HBM base die and rising demand from North American customers," adding, "Results showed a trend of significant improvement even on a basis before reflecting the provision." The company said revenue improvement this year will exceed 30% from a year earlier, and emphasized that profitability improvement will gain traction through a business structure reorganization focused on high-growth areas.
The order momentum is also clear. The company said, "We won 2-nanometer projects from major CSP customers and AI and HPC clients, and customers have begun product design," and projected, "On the back of this momentum, the number of 2-nanometer order projects in 2026 will more than double from a year earlier." It added that it is discussing various projects with key customers, including Broadcom, and is continuing to expand new orders. It projected the revenue share from AI and HPC applications will rise from the high-10% range last year to over 30% this year, and that the revenue share from leading-edge nodes will exceed half in the second half.
Capacity expansion is also moving into full swing. Samsung Electronics said, "The current pace of expanding leading-edge capacity is not keeping up with the growth in customer demand," adding, "Taylor Fab 1 is proceeding with preparations for 2026 operation as planned, after which we will expand 2-nanometer capacity in stages." It continued, "To respond in a timely manner to increasing customer demand, we are also preparing to start construction of Taylor Fab 2 at the end of this year, targeting mass production in 2030," and added, "As customer inquiries about 1.4-nanometer increase, we are also considering securing additional fabs." Specific investment plans will be finalized in stages depending on customer order status and the outcome of discussions.
Meanwhile, the board of directors approved a second-quarter cash dividend of 374 won per share for both common and preferred stock. Samsung Electronics has been paying regular dividends of 9.8 trillion won annually from 2024 through this year, and this quarter's payout is about 2.45 trillion won, to be paid in August. This year marks the end of the three-year shareholder return policy. Samsung Electronics said, "The board and management are actively discussing shareholder return measures, including a special dividend this year," adding, "We are also reviewing the next policy in depth."