Samsung released its Q2 earnings forecast: operating profit increased by over 1800% year-on-year, with single-quarter profit exceeding the total of the previous three years.
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The market ignored Samsung's impressive earnings forecast, and Samsung Electronics opened down 3%.
According to BlockBeats, on July 7th, based on Bitget market data, the South Korean KOSPI index opened down 96.78 points, or 1.2%, at 7954.55 points on Tuesday, July 7th. Samsung Electronics fell 3%, and SK Hynix fell 1%. Previously, Samsung released its Q2 earnings forecast, showing that its operating profit increased by over 1800% year-on-year, with single-quarter profit exceeding the total of the previous three years. At the same time, the company's revenue also increased by 129% year-on-year, reaching 171 trillion won.
Samsung Electronics' operating profit this year is expected to exceed the cumulative total of the past 40 years, and the second quarter may set a new record for the highest operating profit in the history of global technology companies.
According to Mars Finance, on July 6th, Kim Yong-kwan, head of the semiconductor business's operational strategy at Samsung Electronics, released optimistic signals at a departmental meeting on July 3rd, stating that this year's operating profit will meet market expectations, and adding that "the cumulative profit over the past 40 years of the semiconductor business is less than this year's profit alone." The market currently expects Samsung Electronics' full-year operating profit for 2026 to be approximately 300 trillion won, with a consensus expectation of 84.6 trillion won for the second quarter—if realized, this would surpass Nvidia's record of $53.536 billion in the first quarter of this year, setting a new record for the highest single-quarter operating profit for a global technology company. Kim Yong-kwan also emphasized that the company continues to invest over 40 trillion won in capital expenditure annually and plans to further expand its investment scale to cope with the continued expansion of demand for AI semiconductors. The combined performance of South Korea's two semiconductor giants is equally remarkable. SK Hynix's second-quarter operating profit is expected to be around 64.4 trillion won, bringing the combined total for both companies to approximately 149 trillion won, approaching 150 trillion won. However, some market analysts point out that the storage sector's stock prices have recently shown signs of peaking and declining. Whether they can rise further depends on whether the earnings significantly exceed expectations. The size and duration of long-term supply contracts and the price trend of storage in the second half of the year will be key variables to watch. Furthermore, SK Hynix's ADRs will be listed on July 10th. 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 a valuation premium of approximately 20%. JPMorgan Chase points out that the second-quarter earnings season will be a watershed moment for reassessing the storage cycle.
Samsung expects its Q2 operating profit to reach 89.4 trillion won, a staggering 1810% year-on-year increase.
According to an official announcement from Samsung Electronics, the company has released its performance guidance for the second quarter of 2026. Based on Korean International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS), Samsung Electronics expects consolidated sales of approximately 171 trillion won (estimated range: 170 trillion to 172 trillion won) and consolidated operating profit of approximately 89.4 trillion won (estimated range: 89.3 trillion to 89.5 trillion won). Data shows a significant leap in Samsung Electronics' performance compared to the same period last year. In comparison, its consolidated sales in the second quarter of 2025 were 74.57 trillion won, and its operating profit was 4.68 trillion won; in the previous quarter (first quarter of 2026), its sales were 133.87 trillion won, and its operating profit was 57.23 trillion won. This strong performance is mainly attributed to the continued surge in demand and price increases for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and other advanced memory chips driven by the ongoing artificial intelligence boom. Samsung Electronics is reportedly set to release a detailed full financial report later this month.
Samsung will release its preliminary Q2 financial results tomorrow: profits are expected to surge 18 times, with executives boasting that "one year's profits are equivalent to 40 years' worth."
According to BlockBeats, Samsung Electronics will release its preliminary Q2 2026 results on July 7th, while SK Hynix will list its ADRs on Nasdaq on July 10th. With these two major events for South Korea's semiconductor giants, the market is highly focused on the industry's health and the impact of AI chip demand on earnings. According to a compilation of forecasts from 30 analysts by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), Samsung Electronics' Q2 operating profit is expected to be approximately 86 trillion won (about US$56.3 billion), with some brokerages predicting as high as 90 trillion won, representing a year-on-year increase of approximately 17-18 times, potentially marking its best quarterly performance in recent years. Prior to the preliminary earnings release, Samsung Electronics management has already released positive signals. Kim Yong-kwan, President of Business Strategy for Samsung Electronics Device Solutions (DS) division, stated at an internal all-hands meeting on July 3rd that the company's full-year 2026 operating profit is expected to meet market consensus expectations. Currently, the market generally expects Samsung Electronics' full-year operating profit to be approximately 300 trillion won (about US$200 billion), with improvements in AI servers, high-bandwidth memory (HBM), and wafer foundry business considered the main drivers of growth. Kim Yong-kwan also stated, "This year's profit will exceed the total cumulative profit of our 40 years in the semiconductor business." Industry insiders believe this is a rare instance of Samsung Electronics management proactively making a positive statement about the full-year profit outlook before officially disclosing the results, reflecting the company's strong confidence in the recovery of its AI-driven semiconductor business and its overall performance growth for the year. With the release of Samsung's financial report and the upcoming listing of SK Hynix's ADRs, the South Korean semiconductor sector will be entering its most important market observation window in the near future.
US pre-market news at a glance: Samsung's earnings report triggered a collective weakness in semiconductor stocks in pre-market trading; SpaceX officially debuts on the Nasdaq 100 today.
According to BlockBeats, the following are key market news items before the US stock market opened on July 7th: 1. Samsung released its Q2 earnings forecast, showing an operating profit increase of over 1800% year-on-year, with single-quarter profits exceeding the total of the previous three years. Simultaneously, the company's revenue also increased by 129% year-on-year, reaching 171 trillion won. Affected by the semiconductor sell-off triggered by the "sell-off" of Samsung's earnings, chip-related technology stocks generally weakened in pre-market trading. The three major US stock futures indices showed mixed results in pre-market trading: Dow Jones futures rose 0.41%, Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.9%, and S&P 500 futures fell 0.09%. 2. SpaceX officially debuted on the Nasdaq 100 before the US stock market opened today, with Wall Street institutions collectively bullish. Most institutions believe that SpaceX is no longer just a traditional aerospace company, but a platform company with the potential for rocket launches, Starlink satellite internet, AI infrastructure, and future space computing. 3. DeepSeek is secretly developing its own inference chip. If successful, this would reduce reliance on external suppliers and give it more cost-effective hardware control. However, the project is still in its early stages and faces manufacturing and memory acquisition restrictions due to US export controls. 4. UBS recommends investors buy SK Hynix's upcoming American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) and sell its South Korean shares, as these new shares are expected to trade at higher prices. 5. JPMorgan strategists say the recent weakness in semiconductor stocks should be seen as a buying opportunity, as the chip upcycle is not yet over, and truly meaningful new supply may not appear until 2028. 6. US ADP employment change for the week ending June 20 was 21,000, compared to 30,750 in the previous week. 7. BlackRock will launch an ETF tracking the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index, aiming to meet investors' growing demand for participation in the AI-driven stock market rally and challenge Invesco's dominant position. 8. Amazon is returning to the US bond market to raise funds for its artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company will issue eight benchmark bonds with maturities ranging from 3 to 40 years, raising at least $25 billion in the dollar bond offering. 9. Global brokerages have begun coverage research on Elon Musk's SpaceX (SPCX.O), and a preliminary consensus has formed on Wall Street: buy the stock. At least six brokerages, including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and UBS, have given it a buy rating, optimistic about its long-term growth prospects, although doubts remain about profitability and valuation.
Samsung is projected to earn more in one year than in the previous 40 years, with operating profit estimated at approximately $200 billion this year.
According to a post on the X platform by Citrini analyst Jukan, as reported by Odaily Odaily, South Korean media stated that Kim Yong-kwan, President and Head of Business Strategy at Samsung Electronics Device Solutions, said at an all-hands meeting of DS division management on July 3 that this year's operating profit is expected to meet market consensus. South Korean securities firms estimate that Samsung Electronics' operating profit this year will be approximately 300 trillion won, equivalent to about US$200 billion. Kim Yong-kwan reportedly stated that this year's profit alone will exceed the cumulative profits generated by Samsung in its 40 years in the semiconductor business.