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SK Hynix’s record first-quarter profit did not translate into a larger stock boost on Thursday, as investors weighed whether the AI-driven memory boom can continue at the same pace. The South Korean chipmaker reported operating profit of 37.6 trillion won ($25.4 billion) for the January-March period, up more than fivefold from a year earlier, on revenue of 52.6 trillion won.
Even with the strong results, the stock’s response was subdued because expectations had already been pushed very high. SK Hynix shares had climbed nearly 90% this year before the earnings release, leaving the latest quarter more like a confirmation than a surprise. Following the announcement, the stock was down 2.1% in morning trade.
Analysts said the results did not fully impress investors who are increasingly focused on how long booming AI memory sales can last. For a stock that has already rallied sharply, even a record quarter can appear to the market as meeting expectations rather than changing the outlook.
The central debate is not whether demand is strong today, but whether it can remain strong. SK Hynix said customer requests for high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, already exceed its production capacity for the next three years. While that indicates powerful demand, it also highlights a supply bottleneck the company must address before the shares can gain another leg higher.
Chairman Chey Tae-won also warned that a broader shortage of semiconductor wafers could extend to 2030, as AI demand continues to run ahead of supply. This framing helps explain why investors are treating the earnings as evidence of a strong cycle rather than the end of the valuation debate.
The market is asking how long pricing power can last if customers are already securing output several years ahead. While capex is expected to rise, growth will still take time.
SK Hynix is responding with additional investment. The company plans to lift capital spending beyond last year’s 30.2 trillion won, expand capacity through a new chip plant in South Korea, and purchase advanced EUV lithography tools from ASML. Capital spending is expected to rise significantly this year.
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