(Editor’s note: This story and its headline have been updated to reflect SKHY’s premarket move.)
SK Hynix Inx (NASDAQ:SKHY) reported record quarterly earnings on Wednesday as surging demand for AI memory chips drove its strongest-ever financial performance, although its quarterly profit fell short of analysts’ expectations.
Operating Profit Falls Short of Estimates
For the second quarter, the South Korean chipmaker reported operating profit of 60.54 trillion KRW ($41.62 billion), up 557% from a year earlier, but below the 64 trillion KRW ($43.99 billion) forecast compiled by LSEG SmartEstimate.
Revenue rose 257%, more than triple, to a record 79.32 trillion KRW ($54.53 billion), while net profit climbed to 93.92 trillion KRW ($64.56 billion), driven partly by non-operating gains.
The company also posted a record 76% operating margin.
The earnings were SK Hynix’s first since listing its American depositary receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq earlier this month.
CapEx Set To Reach High-End of 40 Trillion Won Range
SK Hynix said it now expects 2026 capital spending to reach the high end of its previously guided 40 trillion won range, amid continued investment in AI memory capacity and advanced packaging.
For the third quarter, the company expects DRAM shipments to increase about 10% and NAND shipments to rise about 3%.
For the full year, it forecasts DRAM demand to grow about 25% and NAND demand to increase about 18%.
Locks In Long-Term AI Demand
The company has finalized long-term supply agreements with around 10 customers and is expanding multi-year contract discussions to secure future demand.
It has begun mass shipments of HBM4, completed customer sampling for HBM4E and is expanding production capacity through its M15X and Yongin facilities.
SK Hynix holds about 29% of the global DRAM market, behind Samsung Electronics Co Ltd‘s 39% share and ahead of Micron Technology Inc‘s (NASDAQ:MU) 22%, while China’s CXMT has about 8%.
CNBC host Jim Cramer said the results “may not be that bad,” adding that bears were “really trying to take apart a good story with Hynix.”
SK Hynix "miss" may not be that bad. Seagate is good. But have to deal with Iran….
— Jim Cramer (@jimcramer) July 28, 2026
SK Hynix turn and Seagate good.. bears really trying to take apart good story with Hynix
— Jim Cramer (@jimcramer) July 29, 2026
Seoul-listed shares of SK Hynix fell 2.52% to 1,511,000 KRW ($1,040.11) at the time of writing.
Price Action: At the time of writing, the company’s ADRs were down 2.12% to $127.41 in pre-market trading on Wednesday.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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