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Photo = SK hynix |
[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Jisun] BNK Investment Securities has reaffirmed its 'Buy' rating on SK Hynix (000660) and raised its target price from KRW 230,000 to KRW 250,000, citing expectations for performance differentiation driven by the expansion of premium products. The previous day's closing price was KRW 198,200.
On the 24th, SK Hynix announced that its consolidated operating profit for the third quarter was tentatively reported at KRW 7.03 trillion, marking a 28.6% increase from KRW 5.47 trillion in the previous quarter. This figure significantly exceeded the market consensus of around KRW 6.8 trillion, setting a new record for quarterly operating profit. Third-quarter revenue was reported at KRW 17.57 trillion, a 93.9% increase year-on-year.
SK Hynix stated, "Sales of high-value-added products increased, leading to a substantial rise in the average selling price (ASP) of both DRAM and NAND products, which rose by the mid-teens percentage range compared to the previous quarter, resulting in record operating profit."
BNK Investment Securities forecasts that the polarization of demand between AI and non-AI products will continue until the end of the year. Despite inventory adjustments in mobile segments, the ongoing demand for server inventory accumulation and the release of NVIDIA's AI accelerator product 'Blackwell' are expected to further increase the proportion of premium product sales. The firm estimates fourth-quarter revenue and operating profit to be KRW 18.95 trillion and KRW 8.06 trillion, respectively.
Additionally, BNK Investment Securities noted, "As the AI investment boom continues, demand forecasts for HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) are being revised upward, while competitors' entry remains delayed. This suggests that SK Hynix will continue to struggle to meet demand next year, maintaining its strong position in the high-capacity memory premium market and further differentiating its performance."
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
