Citi just cut price targets on Samsung and SK Hynix — but this is purely FX and accounting noise, not a memory cycle call. The won weakness is doing the damage here, not demand.
SK Hynix target drops from ₩3.10M to ₩3.00M (~$2,170). Q3 operating profit now ₩74.0 trillion vs. ₩76.7 trillion prior. Full-year 2026 OP trimmed to ₩254.2 trillion from ₩261.1 trillion. Buy rating stays.
Samsung target falls from ₩450K to ₩430K (~$310). Q3 OP now ₩104.1 trillion vs. ₩115.5 trillion — about 9% under consensus. Citi splits the cut roughly 50/50: ₩5 trillion FX hit, ₩5 trillion from Q2 inventory bonuses rolling into Q3 COGS.
Citi's Q3 segment view for Samsung: Semiconductors ₩105.1T, Display ₩1.4T, Mobile -₩1.7T loss, Consumer Electronics -₩600B loss. Full-year OP down 7.1%. Buy stays on memory tightness, long-term agreements, buybacks, and potential HBM4 share gains in H2.
The memory prints are still massive. The leaks are in consumer mobile and CE. The won is the other drag. This is not a demand downgrade — it's currency and cost timing. The memory cycle thesis is intact.
SK Hynix target drops from ₩3.10M to ₩3.00M (~$2,170). Q3 operating profit now ₩74.0 trillion vs. ₩76.7 trillion prior. Full-year 2026 OP trimmed to ₩254.2 trillion from ₩261.1 trillion. Buy rating stays.
Samsung target falls from ₩450K to ₩430K (~$310). Q3 OP now ₩104.1 trillion vs. ₩115.5 trillion — about 9% under consensus. Citi splits the cut roughly 50/50: ₩5 trillion FX hit, ₩5 trillion from Q2 inventory bonuses rolling into Q3 COGS.
Citi's Q3 segment view for Samsung: Semiconductors ₩105.1T, Display ₩1.4T, Mobile -₩1.7T loss, Consumer Electronics -₩600B loss. Full-year OP down 7.1%. Buy stays on memory tightness, long-term agreements, buybacks, and potential HBM4 share gains in H2.
The memory prints are still massive. The leaks are in consumer mobile and CE. The won is the other drag. This is not a demand downgrade — it's currency and cost timing. The memory cycle thesis is intact.
