SK Hynix Q3 2026 Earnings: Quarterly Revenue Tops KRW 100 Trillion for the First Time, With Approximately KRW 100 Trillion in Annual Shareholder Returns Planned

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SK Hynix (000660) announced its third-quarter financial results on October 28, 2026. Quarterly revenue exceeded KRW 100 trillion for the first time, and on the same day, the board of directors approved a cash dividend of KRW 20,000 per share and a KRW 20 trillion share repurchase. At 9 a.m., the company held an earnings conference call to discuss HBM4 mass production, long-term agreements (LTAs), and its investment plans for next year.

This article summarizes information released on the announcement date, including SK Hynix Newsroom materials, regulatory filings, the earnings conference call, and media reports. Confirmed figures are distinguished from the company’s forecasts and plans. This article does not constitute investment advice.

1. Q3 Results at a Glance (Consolidated, K-IFRS, Preliminary)

– Cumulative Q1–Q3 results: Approximately KRW 236.5105 trillion in revenue and KRW 181.4867 trillion in operating profit. – CEO Kwak Noh-jung stated during the conference call that the company had achieved record results for six consecutive quarters.

Revenue and operating profit reached new all-time highs, surpassing the records set in the previous quarter. Net profit declined quarter-on-quarter, while the disclosed figures show that pre-tax profit fell from KRW 122.7 trillion to KRW 50.7 trillion. No company explanation for the decline was found in the materials reviewed for this article. All figures above are preliminary and have not yet undergone an external audit. Final figures will be confirmed in the subsequent quarterly report.

Comparison With Market Expectations – Operating profit was 9.3% above the Yonhap Infomax forecast of KRW 76.2605 trillion. – It was 8.2% above the FnGuide consensus estimate of KRW 76.9640 trillion. – LSEG estimates cited by CNBC were KRW 98.34 trillion in revenue and KRW 76.72 trillion in operating profit.

2. Factors Driving Earnings Growth

SK Hynix attributed the strong results primarily to rising memory prices driven by increasing AI memory demand and a higher proportion of high-value-added product sales. The company provided the following details during its conference call.

DRAM – Full-scale mass production and shipments of HBM4, the sixth generation of HBM, began in the third quarter. – Server DDR5 shipments increased by more than 40% quarter-on-quarter. – DRAM bit shipments rose approximately 10% quarter-on-quarter, in line with the company’s plan. – DRAM average selling prices (ASPs) reportedly increased by a percentage in the high 20s quarter-on-quarter (CNBC). The increase was attributed to both strong conventional DRAM prices and a higher share of HBM4 sales.

NAND – Sales of enterprise SSDs (eSSDs) based on 321-layer TLC NAND increased. – The company stated that NAND ASPs rose by a percentage in the mid-20s quarter-on-quarter, according to Chosun Biz.

Profitability Comparison

Aju Business Daily reported that SK Hynix’s third-quarter operating margin of 80% exceeded TSMC’s 58.7% by 21 percentage points, marking the fourth consecutive quarter in which SK Hynix surpassed TSMC on this measure.

3. Financial Position

– Cash and cash equivalents at the end of Q3: KRW 114.5 trillion (up KRW 26.5 trillion from the previous quarter-end). – Borrowings: KRW 15.8 trillion (down KRW 2.8 trillion from the previous quarter-end). – Net cash: KRW 98.7 trillion.

With cash increasing and borrowings declining, the company’s net cash position approached KRW 100 trillion. This provides funding for its large-scale shareholder return plan.

4. Shareholder Returns: Approximately KRW 100 Trillion in 2026

SK Hynix's Shareholder Return Plan for Fiscal Year 2026
– Cash dividends of at least KRW 30 trillion.
– Share repurchases and cancellations totaling at least KRW 60 trillion (including the KRW 40 trillion announced in August).
– Approximately KRW 100 trillion in total. The company explained that this would fulfill its August commitment to return at least 50% of free cash flow (FCF) to shareholders.
– The KRW 40 trillion share repurchase announced in August was completed last week, and the company said the shares would soon be cancelled. The actual cancellation schedule, including the KRW 10 trillion portion of the newly announced repurchase designated for cancellation, is subject to separate procedures that can be verified through company filings.

Board Resolutions on October 28
– **Q3 Cash Dividend: KRW 14 Trillion in Total, KRW 20,000 per Share**
– KRW 10,000 reflecting improved operating performance.
– KRW 10,000 as a special dividend reflecting returns from the Kioxia investment.
– Media reports noted that this was more than 53 times the previous quarterly dividend of KRW 375 per share.
– **Share Repurchase: KRW 20 Trillion**
– KRW 10 trillion: Shares to be fully cancelled after repurchase for shareholder return purposes.
– Approximately KRW 10 trillion: Shares intended for employee compensation (the company did not include this portion in its shareholder return total).

Dividend Schedule (Based on Regulatory Filings)
– Board resolution date: October 28, 2026.
– Dividend record date: **November 30, 2026** (quarterly dividend, determined by the record date without closing the shareholder register).
– Payment date: Listed as "-" in the filing and not yet determined. (It is expected to be confirmed through a subsequent DART filing, so no specific payment date can be established as of this article.)
– Dividend yield at the time of disclosure: 1.56% for common shares (based on a share price of KRW 1,341,000).
– Seoul Economic Daily interpreted South Korea's settlement schedule as requiring shares to be purchased by November 26 to qualify for the Q3 dividend. This is the publication's calculation, not a statement in the original regulatory filing.

Payment Structure for the Kioxia Special Dividend (Company Plan)

During the conference call, SK Hynix stated that it intended to return most of the realized gains from its Kioxia investment to shareholders through special dividends. According to the company’s plan, part of this amount will be paid first through the Q3 dividend, with the remainder reflected in the final dividend after the fiscal year 2026 accounts are finalized. Because the final dividend amount will be determined after annual results are confirmed, the remaining special dividend amount cannot be stated definitively at this stage. Only the company’s plan can be confirmed.

Shareholder Return Principles Announced by SK Hynix

The company outlined the following principles in its announcement: – Dividend amounts will be determined based on operating performance. – Significant investment gains will result in additional shareholder returns through special dividends. – Share repurchases will continue quarterly.

CEO Kwak Noh-jung stated that as business growth and investment achievements accumulate, the benefits shared with shareholders should also increase, according to Aju Business Daily.

5. Company Outlook and Plans (Company's Views)

The following information reflects statements made by SK Hynix in its presentation materials and during the Korean- and English-language webcasts of its 9 a.m. conference call on October 28. These are the company’s forecasts and plans, not confirmed future outcomes.

Supply and Demand Outlook – Considering the increasing complexity of advanced manufacturing processes and the time required to construct new fabrication facilities, the company expects memory demand to continue exceeding supply through 2030. – The company explained that AI investment is expanding beyond a small number of major technology companies to ordinary enterprises and national sovereign AI initiatives. It believes that even if one company slows its investment, demand from other sources could compensate. – For 2027, the company projected memory demand growth in the mid-20% range for DRAM and the high-teens range for NAND. – Combining volumes already secured under LTAs with demand currently under negotiation, the company described its DRAM and HBM volumes as “effectively sold out” through 2029.

Long-Term Agreements (LTAs) – The company stated that it had signed agreements with 14 major customers, including large global cloud providers, securing volumes representing more than 50% of its total production capacity for 2027–2028. – Contract terms are generally five years, and extensions are under discussion with some customers. Prices will reflect market conditions within mutually agreed ranges.

HBM4 – The company expects HBM4 to surpass HBM3E in both shipment volume and revenue in the fourth quarter. – HBM4 yields have exceeded the original plan, prompting the company to raise its targets. – Regarding the possibility that some customers may adjust the number of HBM stacked layers, the company said customer-requested volumes were “twice the available supply” and explained that its medium- to long-term shipment plans remain unchanged. – The company plans to maximize production capacity at its Cheongju M15X facility by year-end.

Q4 Shipment Guidance – DRAM shipments are expected to increase by a percentage in the mid-20s quarter-on-quarter, while NAND shipments are projected to grow by a mid-single-digit percentage (Investing.com earnings call transcript).

DRAM and NAND Product Plans – The company is pursuing a higher share of 1c process production and expanded sales of DDR5 and LPDDR5 SOCAMM for AI servers. – In the fourth quarter, it plans to increase the share of 321-layer NAND to more than half of its domestic production capacity.

Investment – The company expects capital investment to increase substantially next year compared with this year, partly due to the planned full-scale operation of the first Yongin fabrication facility. – However, the company intends to open cleanrooms at the Yongin cluster in phases and adjust equipment installation and mass production expansion schedules according to customer demand.

6. Market Reaction on the Announcement Date (Facts)

– According to CNBC, SK Hynix shares rose more than 8% on the earnings announcement date, outperforming the KOSPI’s 6.25% gain. – MoneyToday reported that the stock was also up by approximately 4% in the Nextrade premarket before the regular trading session opened. – Other factors, including strength in U.S. semiconductor stocks, were also cited as contributing to the share price movement.

7. Summary

SK Hynix set new quarterly records in Q3 2026, reporting revenue of KRW 104.6 trillion and operating profit of KRW 83.3 trillion, with an operating margin of 80%. According to the company, full-scale HBM4 production and increased sales of server DDR5 and eSSDs were the primary growth drivers.

The board approved a KRW 20,000-per-share dividend (record date: November 30) and a KRW 20 trillion share repurchase. The company also presented a plan to return approximately KRW 100 trillion to shareholders this year. Expectations of continued supply shortages, effectively sold-out volumes through 2029, and increased investment represent the company’s forecasts and plans. This article distinguishes those statements from confirmed financial results and regulatory filings.

This article is intended solely to provide information by summarizing publicly available financial results, filings, and news reports. It does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell securities.

Sources (All Dated October 28, 2026) – SK Hynix Newsroom: Q3 2026 Financial Results Announcement – Seoul Economic Daily: Fair Disclosure of Preliminary Operating Results – Seoul Economic Daily: Regulatory Filing – Seoul Economic Daily: Regulatory Filing – AwakePlus – Yonhap News Agency – MoneyToday: KRW 100 Trillion Shareholder Returns, KRW 20,000 Dividend per Share – MoneyToday: SK Hynix Shares Rise on Record Earnings – Aju Business Daily: Earnings Call Summary, HBM and DRAM Effectively Sold Out for Three Years – Aju Business Daily – Aju Business Daily: SK Hynix Surpasses TSMC Again in Profitability – Chosun Biz: HBM4 Mass Production Accelerates, Server DDR5 Shipments Rise More Than 40% – Seoul Economic Daily: 20,000 Won per Share – Korea Herald – CNBC: SK Hynix Shares Soar as Third-Quarter Profit Beats – Investing.com: Earnings Call Transcript – Edaily English Edition