Memory chip maker SK Hynix posts record $13.5B Q4 profit
What's the story
SK Hynix, a leading South Korean semiconductor manufacturer and NVIDIA supplier, has reported a record-breaking quarterly profit. The company's operating profit for the fourth quarter of 2025 surged by an impressive 137% to reach 19.2 trillion won ($13.5 billion). This is a significant jump from last year's figure of 8.1 trillion won and well above the consensus prediction of 17.7 trillion won by LSEG SmartEstimate.
Market leadership
SK Hynix dominates high bandwidth memory market
SK Hynix has established a dominant position in the high bandwidth memory (HBM) segment, which is used in AI chipsets developed by companies like NVIDIA. The company commands a whopping 61% share of the HBM market, as per Macquarie Equity Research. This stronghold has been instrumental in driving its record profits amid rising demand for AI technology.
Price surge
Rising AI demand pushes up chip prices
The growing demand for AI has also led to a spike in prices for commodity DRAM and NAND chips, which are used in servers, PCs, and mobile devices. For instance, the contract price of 16GB DDR5 (a common type of DRAM chip) more than quadrupled last quarter compared to the previous year. Market tracker TrendForce predicts that conventional DRAM contract prices will rise further by 55-60% this quarter over the last one.