[Weekly HOT Stocks] The Choice of Individuals and Foreigners is 'Samsung Electronics'... Record High Reached

Samsung Electronics Closing Price 68,200 Won on the 27th... Records All-Time High for Two Consecutive Days Following the 26th

Samsung Electronics Seocho Building, Seocho-gu, Seoul (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Boryeong] Samsung Electronics' stock price attracted significant attention from the market, hitting an all-time high during the week.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 29th, Samsung Electronics closed at 68,200 KRW on the 27th. Following 68,000 KRW on the 26th, it set a new all-time high for two consecutive days.

Samsung Electronics' stock price ended on an upward trend on all trading days except the 25th during the five trading days. The closing price was 64,700 KRW on the 20th, rising to 67,500 KRW on the 23rd and 67,700 KRW on the 24th. Although it dipped to 66,600 KRW on the 25th, it rose again to 68,000 KRW on the 26th and 68,200 KRW on the 27th. Over five trading days, the stock price increased by 5.41%.

From the 23rd to the 27th, foreign investors net purchased Samsung Electronics shares worth 242.1 billion KRW. Samsung Electronics ranked second among the top net purchases by foreign investors during this period. Individual investors also bought Samsung Electronics shares worth 186 billion KRW during the same period. Samsung Electronics was also the second most net purchased stock by individual investors.

Samsung Electronics' earnings are expected to undergo a correction phase until the first half of next year, followed by a full recovery starting in the second half. Lee Seungwoo, a researcher at Eugene Investment & Securities, stated, "We expect the fourth-quarter earnings this year to show sales of 63.2 trillion KRW and operating profit of 10.2 trillion KRW, which is a slowdown compared to the third quarter. Although the adjustment will not be significant, factors such as exchange rate effects and seasonal off-season will likely cause a gradual correction until the first half of next year." He added, "However, from the second half of next year, we expect to enter a full-scale earnings improvement cycle centered on semiconductors and displays (DP)."

Park Yooak, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, also said, "The DRAM industry is expected to complete its down cycle by the first quarter of next year and enter a long-term boom phase starting from the second quarter of next year." He explained, "This is due to several factors causing increased demand and reduced supply, such as Intel's launch of new central processing units (CPUs), the rising penetration rate of 5th generation (5G) smartphones, and the transition to DDR5."

Eugene Investment & Securities forecast Samsung Electronics' sales for next year at 230.2 billion USD, representing a 14% increase compared to the previous year. Researcher Lee said, "However, assuming an average annual exchange rate of 1,100 KRW due to the impact of exchange rate depreciation, sales in Korean won are expected to increase by 6% to 253.2 trillion KRW compared to the previous year." He analyzed, "Operating profit is projected to increase by 14% to 42.5 trillion KRW."