[Click eStock] "SK Hynix, Macro Uncertainty Including US Economic Concerns... Target Price Down"

Shinyoung Securities on the 20th downgraded the valuation of SK Hynix considering macro issues such as concerns over a US economic recession and election uncertainties, lowering the target price by 11.5% to 230,000 KRW. The investment rating was maintained at 'Buy.'

Researcher Park Sang-wook stated, "The forward book value per share (BPS) was revised upward by 1.7% compared to before, but the applied valuation was lowered by 13.6% considering macro issues such as concerns over a US economic recession and election uncertainties."

Park explained, "Due to investment in HBM transition, DRAM demand is expected to exceed supply this year," and added, "NAND is also expected to maintain high profitability as eSSD demand, primarily produced by Solidigm, increases."

He further added, "Our firm believes in the mid- to long-term growth potential of artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors, and thus maintains a positive view on SK Hynix, which holds a unique technological competitiveness in the HBM market."

Meanwhile, the third-quarter performance and 2025 earnings outlook are expected to be strong. Third-quarter sales are projected to increase by 99% year-on-year to 17.9 trillion KRW, with operating profit turning positive to 6.7 trillion KRW. For the full year 2025, sales are expected to grow by 23% to 80.5 trillion KRW, and operating profit by 52% to 34 trillion KRW.