Samsung Electronics' operating profit this year is expected to exceed its cumulative total over the past 40 years, and the second quarter may set the highest record in the history of global tech companies.

BlockBeats News, July 6 — Kim Yong-kwan, head of strategy for Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor business, delivered an optimistic signal at the department’s all-hands meeting on July 3, saying that this year’s operating profit will align with market expectations, and noting that “the cumulative profit from 40 years of semiconductor operations is less than this year’s profit alone.” The market’s current expectation for Samsung Electronics’ full-year operating profit in 2026 is about 300 trillion won, and the consensus estimate for second-quarter operating profit is 84.6 trillion won—if that materializes, it would surpass Nvidia’s record of $53.536 billion in the first quarter of this year, setting a new all-time high for a single quarter operating profit among global technology companies. Kim Yong-kwan also emphasized that the company continues to invest more than 40 trillion won in annual capital expenditures and plans to further expand its investment scale to meet the ongoing expansion in AI semiconductor demand.

The combined performance of South Korea’s “twin giants” in semiconductors is also attracting attention. SK Hynix’s consensus estimate for second-quarter operating profit is about 64.4 trillion won, and the combined total for the two companies is about 149 trillion won, nearing 150 trillion won. However, some in the market have pointed out that, recently, share prices in the memory sector have shown signs of peaking and pulling back. Whether they can rise further will depend on whether results significantly exceed expectations; the scale and duration of long-term supply contracts, as well as the memory price trend in the second half of the year, will be key variables to watch.

In addition, SK Hynix’s ADR will be listed on July 10. HSBC has raised its target price from 2.9 million won to 4 million won, believing that the ADR listing will improve accessibility for global investors and could bring about a 20% valuation premium. JPMorgan has said that the second-quarter earnings season will become a turning point for reassessing the memory cycle.