https://www.techpowerup.com/328044/sk-hynix-reports-third-quarter-2024-financial-results SK hynix Inc. announced today that it recorded 17.5731 trillion won in revenues, 7.03 trillion won in operating profit (with an operating margin of 40%), and 5.7534 trillion won in net profit (with a net margin of 33%) in the third quarter this year. Quarterly revenues marked all-time high, exceeding the previous record of 16.4233 trillion won in the second quarter of this year by more than 1 trillion won. Operating profit and net profit also far exceeded the record of 6.4724 trillion won and 4.6922 trillion won in the third quarter of 2018 during the semiconductor super boom.
SK hynix emphasized that the demand for AI memory continued to be strong centered on data center customers, and the company marked its highest revenue since its foundation by expanding sales of premium products such as HBM and eSSD. In particular, HBM sales showed excellent growth, up more than 70% from the previous quarter and more than 330% from the same period last year.
As sales increased mainly on highly profitable premium products, the average selling price (ASP) of both DRAM and NAND rose in the mid 10% range compared to the previous quarter, which made the company mark the highest operating profit.
While the demand of memory for AI servers such as HBM and eSSD has grown noticeably this year, the company predicts that this trend will continue next year. This is because generative AI is developing into a multi-modal form and global big tech companies continue to invest to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI).
SK hynix also forecasts that the PC and mobile product markets, which had been slow to recover demand compared to memory for AI servers, will be on a steady growth path as well next year as AI memories optimized for each device are released.
As a result, the company will continue to focus on profitability by increasing sales centered on high value-added products based on its world-leading technology in AI memory.
In the DRAM area, SK hynix is continuing the rapid transition from existing HBM3 to 8-layer HBM3E products. The company also plans to start supplying 12-layer HBM3E products, which were mass-produced last month, in the fourth quarter as scheduled. This makes HBM sales, which accounted for 30% of total DRAM revenues in the third quarter, expected to reach 40% in the fourth quarter.
For NAND, the company plans to expand sales of high-capacity eSSD, which is rapidly increasing market demand, while focusing on investment efficiency and production optimization.
"SK hynix has solidified its position as the world's No 1 AI memory company by achieving the highest business performance ever in the third quarter of this year." said Kim Woohyun, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at SK hynix. "We will continue to maximize profitability while securing stable revenues by taking flexible product and supply strategies in line with market demand."
A very good financial result.
