"Thank You, AI Boom": Samsung Electronics Set to Enter Era of 100 Trillion Won in Quarterly Operating Profit

[Financial News] Samsung Electronics is expected to make history by entering an era of 100 trillion won in quarterly operating profit. The company is poised to surpass its record-high quarterly operating profit from the second quarter in just one quarter. With the AI boom expected to continue, its record-setting performance is also forecast to extend into next year.
According to industry sources on the 4th, Samsung Electronics is scheduled to announce its provisional third-quarter results on the 8th. FnGuide estimated the company's third-quarter operating profit at approximately 105.1968 trillion won as of that day, based on its estimate from one month earlier. The figure is expected to represent a 764.7% surge from the same period last year. It also reflects the recent decline in the won-dollar exchange rate.
Once again, the Memory Business Division within the DS Division is leading the company's performance.
The increase is attributed to prices for commodity DRAM such as DDR5 SDRAM, enterprise solid-state drives (SSDs), and NAND flash products rising by more than approximately 10% from the previous quarter. The ramp-up of High Bandwidth Memory 4 (HBM4) mass production also contributed to revenue growth. As AI agents consume large volumes of not only HBM but also commodity DRAM and NAND, demand sources are expanding while supply shortages persist.
Noh Geun-chang, CEO of Semicon Research Lab, said, "HBM, commodity DRAM, and NAND flash all contributed to Samsung Electronics' third-quarter results amid supply shortages." He added, "Despite the stronger won, memory prices rose significantly, so Samsung Electronics' earnings are expected to exceed the market expectation of 105 trillion won."
In fact, Samsung Electronics began ramping up HBM4 mass production in the third quarter, and its HBM revenue expanded by more than 60% from the previous quarter. This indicates that the company's HBM competitiveness is beginning to be reflected in its earnings. HBM4 is scheduled to be used in NVIDIA's new AI accelerator, the NVIDIA Vera Rubin platform, in the second half of this year, which is expected to further accelerate market-share gains.
As Samsung Electronics and SK hynix increase HBM production, fewer wafers are allocated to commodity DRAM, further intensifying supply shortages. TrendForce expects DRAM and NAND prices to rise by 13% to 18% in the fourth quarter as well. Accordingly, Samsung Electronics' estimated fourth-quarter operating profit for this year is expected to approach approximately 120 won.
However, the foundry and System LSI businesses, along with the Device eXperience (DX) Division, are expected to remain mired in losses.

[email protected] Park So-hyun, Park Ji-yeon Reporter