Ahead of the earnings announcement from US Big Tech company Meta in the early hours of the 22nd (Korean time), Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix rose. In the early trading session, Samsung Electronics climbed into the 220,000 won range, while SK Hynix rose to the 1.3 million won range. Despite the widening gap between current stock prices and target prices, brokerage firms are maintaining their target prices and "Buy" investment ratings for both stocks.
On the 21st, Samsung Electronics, the leading stock on the KOSPI, closed the regular trading session at 223,500 won, up 12,000 won (5.57%) from the previous trading day. Although Samsung Electronics had fallen to the 200,000 won range in the previous trading session, it recovered to the 220,000 won range within a single day.
SK Hynix, which holds a significant weight on the KOSPI alongside Samsung Electronics as one of the semiconductor duopoly, also closed at 1,294,000 won, up 71,000 won (5.81%) from the previous trading day. During the session, SK Hynix fluctuated around the 1.3 million won mark.
The semiconductor sector showed an overall strong trend. As of market close, KOSDAQ small- and mid-cap stocks such as Melcon (24.01%), Hanyang Digitech (12.85%), Comico (11.16%), and Fidelix (10.49%) recorded double-digit gains. Stocks linked to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix through equity stakes or business ties also rose across the board, led by Samsung C&T (5.45%) and SK Square (4.18%).
However, they failed to fully recover the losses from last week. On the 8th, the stock prices of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix were in the 260,000 won and 1.68 million won ranges, respectively.
The rebound on this day is analyzed as the result of contrarian buying inflows following the recent sharp decline. Additionally, macroeconomic conditions contributed, including falling international oil prices driven by expectations for negotiations between the US and Iran, and stable long-term interest rates. Investor sentiment was also boosted by Super Micro Computer (SMCI), a US AI server company, releasing a surprise earnings outlook overnight, which heightened expectations for semiconductor capital investment and subsequent revenue growth.
Brokerage firms stated that they are maintaining their "Buy" investment ratings, noting the confirmed rebound in large-cap semiconductor stocks.
In its global memory report titled "AI Market Concerns and Memory Semiconductor Outlook," published on the 19th, Nomura Securities forecast that supply chain bottlenecks in the memory market will continue at least until 2028. Nomura Securities also identified Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix as stocks to watch, maintaining target prices of 670,000 won and 4.7 million won, respectively.
Mirae Asset Securities also maintained its "Overweight" recommendation for the semiconductor sector in a recent report. It kept the target prices for Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix at their previous levels of 400,000 won and 3.1 million won, respectively. Researcher Kim Young-geon from Mirae Asset Securities said, "We are confirming our stance that AI demand is extremely robust with no signs of slowing down," adding, "Rather than excessive pessimistic interpretations, it is necessary to have confidence in the optimistic outlooks of the leading group within the sector."
No brokerage firm has lowered its target prices for Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix since the beginning of this month. On the contrary, Meritz Securities raised its target price for SK Hynix from 3.1 million won to 3.2 million won on the 12th. The highest target prices presented by domestic brokerage firms are 630,000 won for Samsung Electronics (Yuantar Securities) and 4.7 million won for SK Hynix (Korea Investment & Securities).
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