SK Hynix earnings surged in the third quarter of 2026, with operating profit reaching 83.3338 trillion won as demand for AI memory helped lift sales. The company also outlined approximately 100 trillion won in shareholder returns for the year, including a previously announced buyback.

Key Takeaways

  • Quarterly operating profit rose 632% from a year earlier, while revenue topped 100 trillion won for the first time.
  • The 2026 return plan includes at least 30 trillion won in cash dividends and at least 60 trillion won in share repurchases and cancellations.
  • SK Hynix expects memory demand to exceed supply through 2030 and plans to expand production.

SK Hynix earnings and AI memory demand

In its preliminary third-quarter results announced on October 28, SK Hynix reported revenue of 104.6155 trillion won and net profit of 39.7756 trillion won. Operating profit beat projections by more than 7%. The figures remain subject to change during the independent auditing process.

The company said higher prices for key products, growing AI memory demand and sales of high-value products supported its results. Server DDR5 sales increased significantly, while shipments of its HBM4 high-bandwidth memory began in earnest.

SK Hynix shares rose more than 7% in early Seoul trading on October 28. Samsung Electronics shares gained more than 8%.

What the shareholder return plan includes

The approximately 100 trillion won planned for fiscal 2026 includes the 40 trillion won buyback announced in August, which SK Hynix said was completed the week before its results. The company plans to cancel those shares shortly.

The board approved a third-quarter cash dividend totaling 14 trillion won and a 20 trillion won share repurchase. Half of the new repurchase is intended for shareholder returns and cancellation; the other approximately 10 trillion won is for employee compensation and is excluded from the shareholder return total.

The 20,000 won-per-share quarterly dividend includes a 10,000 won special dividend sharing gains from the company’s Kioxia investment. SK Hynix said it would return most of the gains realized from that investment this year to shareholders.

Production expansion and supply outlook

SK Hynix expects memory supply to remain below demand through 2030, citing the technical difficulty of advanced production processes and the time required to build facilities.

The company said long-term agreements with 14 major customers cover more than half of its production capacity for 2027 and 2028. It expects investment to rise significantly next year but said it would adjust the scale and timing in response to factors including demand and profitability.

SK Hynix plans to ramp its M15X facility to maximum capacity by the end of 2026 and expects HBM4 to exceed HBM3E in shipment volume and revenue in the fourth quarter.

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