SK Hynix Reports Record Q3 2024 Profits Driven by AI Memory Demand

SK hynix posts record-high Q3 2024 profit, sales of 'explosive' demand of AI memory, HBM, eSSDs

SK hynix announces Q3 2024 financial results: breaking records once again, and cementing itself as the #1 AI memory technology provider in the world. SK hynix has reported its Q3 2024 financial report, noting new records in revenue and net profit, achieving the best-ever quarterly performance with "increasing premium product sales" on based on its #1 AI memory technology. The South Korean memory leader noted strong demand of memory for AI servers, with HBM memory share of DRAM revenues for SK hynix in Q3 2024 hitting 30% and forecasted to reach 40% in Q4 2024 (especially as NVIDIA's new Blackwell B200 and GB200 are now in the wild with the fastest HBM3E memory on-board). SK hynix reported revenues of 17.5731 trillion won (around $12.6 billion USD or so), operating profits of 70.3 trillion won (around $5 billion USD or so) and net profits of 5.7534 trillion won (around $4.1 billion USD or so). The company 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.

SK hynix records stellar 94% YoY revenue boost in Q3'24 -- Attributes record profits to soaring demand of memory in AI servers

SK hynix has just seen one of its best financial quarters in history, marking a staggering 94% growth in revenue compared to last year. SK hynix credits the ever-rising demand for memory in the AI market as it leaps over its competitors with the development of its HBM3E offerings. The company's net income, which was in the red throughout 2023 is steadily rising this year with a 40% spike quarter over quarter. Being one of the key memory suppliers to Nvidia and AMD has been crucial for all memory makers due to the potential growth in the AI industry. Much of these profits are likely the result of SK hynix leapfrogging Samsung and Micron in securing HBM3E contracts for Nvidia's Blackwell GPUs. Similarly, just last month, SK hynix began mass production of 12-Hi HBM3E for Blackwell Ultra (B300) products and AMD's MI325X series. SK hynix says that the catalyst behind its highest-ever revenue since inception is the expansion of its HBM and eSSD offerings and an overall stronger foothold in the memory market. Quarterly, HBM sales by SK hynix increased by 70% and a whopping 330% when compared to last year. Going over the numbers, the third quarter covers the months of July, August, and September. SK hynix reports a quarterly revenue of 17,573 Trillion won ($12.6 Billion) - which is 94% higher than last year and a nice 7% uplift against last quarter. The net income is also up by 40% at $4.13 Billion, quarter over quarter, and a strong turnaround for the giant as it lost roughly $1.5 Billion during the same timeframe last year. SK hynix predicts more sales not just from data centers next year but from general mainstream PC and mobile markets owing to the launch of "optimized AI memories". Since mass production of HBM3E is underway, HBM sales are expected to account for 40% of SK hynix's total DRAM revenue, up from 30% this quarter. In hopes of powering Nvidia's Rubin chips next year, SK hynix's HBM4 memory has been taped out with mass production slated for the second half of 2025 - so these results should not be a one-time occurrence and will only improve further next year.

SK Hynix Discloses "Record Profits" From "HBM" AI Memory Business, Growing Quarterly By a Whopping 94%

SK Hynix has recorded an "explosive" demand for AI memory, with the firm seeing record profits in this quarter, which are associated with orders from NVIDIA and other AI giants. SK Hynix has been at the very forefront when it comes to supplying HBM and other crucial components for the AI industry, and with the South Korean giant initially confined to a few customers, they have capitalized on market opportunities in a tremendous way, which has led to towards establishing a monopoly over the AI memory segment, giving competitors like Samsung no room. In their recent earnings, SK Hynix has reported a record operating profit, with the company witnessing its QoQ revenue growth by up to 94%, which are indeed astonishing numbers. Based on a report by BNN Bloomberg, The South Korean memory maker has bagged an operating profit of 7.03 trillion won ($5.1 billion) in this quarter, with total revenue at 17.6 trillion won ($12.75 billion), and interestingly, this is almost double what the firm reported last quarter. The reason behind such massive growth is simply associated with the fact that competitors like Samsung Electronics and Micron are unable to grab the market spotlight, while SK Hynix is dominating the AI memory segment, particularly in HBM and DRAM sales. Looking ahead, SK Hynix is expected to retain this lead in the memory markets, given that competitors are unable to see the market spotlights, and the firm's next-gen memory processes, mainly the HBM3E and the HBM4, are said to be industry-leading, fueling its adoption from the AI tech giants out there. The South Korean giant is said to be heavily investing in R&D facilities and has started focusing on advanced processes; hence, the firm does look to have a sustainable economic future moving ahead. Interestingly, SK Hynix is said to be booked for 2025 through long-term contracts, and the firm believes the HBM business will rapidly evolve next year, given that AI companies are involved in rapidly enhancing their computing power. Given that HBM ASPs (Average Selling Prices) are expected to grow in parallel as well, we do anticipate the firm to achieve much higher revenue targets next year, given that the AI bandwagon is still up and running. As for competitors, well, they are falling short of competing with SK Hynix in the AI memory race, given that firms like Samsung haven't managed to capitalize on market prospects, which has heavily upscaled the influence of SK Hynix over the AI supply chain, and moving into the future, with the release of HBM4, we are expecting to see this gap grow even wider apart.

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix posts record quarterly profit as AI boom drives demand

South Korea's SK Hynix, one of the world's largest memory chipmakers, on Thursday posted record quarterly profit, boosted by strong demand for its high bandwidth memory (HBM) used in generative AI. Here are SK Hynix's third-quarter results compared with LSEG SmartEstimate, which is weighted toward forecasts from analysts who are more consistently accurate: Operating profit in the July-September quarter hit its highest level, rebounding from a loss of 1.8 trillion won during the same period last year. Quarterly revenue grew about 94% year-on-year from 9.1 trillion won. The South Korean chip giant is a key supplier to Nvidia and has benefitted from a boom in artificial intelligence servers. SK Hynix said in its earnings release Thursday that demand for AI memory, particularly from data center customers, continued to be strong in the third quarter, allowing it to expand sales of premium products such as HBM and eSSD, a core component of AI chips. HBM is a type of dynamic random access memory, known as DRAM, where chips are vertically stacked to save space and reduce power consumption. SK Hynix, Micron Technology and Samsung Electronics are the three main manufacturers of HBM chips. Sales of HBM products were up more than 70% from the previous quarter and more than three times from the same period last year, and the company expects continued growth. "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," the firm said in a press release. Generative AI continues to advance and large tech companies continue to invest to develop the technology, the company said. SK Hynix also forecasted that demand from the PC and mobile consumer product markets will be on a steady growth path next year amid the emergence of AI-optimized devices. The company said last month that it has started mass production of its latest version of HBM chips and aims for delivery by the end of the year. SK Hynix shares initially dropped 0.4% when the markets opened in South Korea on Thursday, before recovering to trade up 1.3%.

SK hynix revenue soars, brushes off AI chip oversupply idea

SK hynix posted on Wednesday what it called its "highest revenue since its foundation" for Q3 2024 as it pledged to continue minuting more AI chips. Revenue totaled ₩17.6 trillion ($12.7 billion), up 94 percent year-on-year. Operating profit stood at ₩7 trillion ($5 billion) after only last year reporting a ₩1.8 trillion ($1.3 billion) loss in the same quarter. Net profit was ₩5.8 trillion ($4.2 billion) with a margin of 33 percent. All three values were described as "new records." SK hynix attributed the stellar results to expanded sales of premium products like high-bandwidth memory (HBM) used in AI and enterprise solid-state drives (eSSD) for datacenters, but mainly HBM as the chip sales were up 330 percent year-on-year and made up 30 percent of all DRAM revenue. eSSD NAND revenue share reached over 60 percent. The company said that it would continue to focus on these high-value chips next year as well, with 12-layer HBM3E starting to replace eight-layer in Q4. It expects HBM to make up 40 percent of all DRAM revenue in Q4. In the company's earnings call, CFO Kim Mohan said the company was on track to double HBM capacity this year, compared to last, even as production capacity was hitting its limits. The promise is sure to keep Nvidia happy as it has promised investors continual ramping up of GPUs. He also brushed off the notion that so much rush to meet demand could create an oversupply. "Unlike general DRAM, HBM has a long-term contract structure with volume and pricing negotiations already completed for 2025," argued Mohan. "We have high visibility on demand, and given the strong demand for AI chips, we believe HBM demand will be higher than currently anticipated." As for PC and mobile products, the company admitted demand had been slow to recover compared to memory for AI servers, but predicted steady growth next year as AI memory becomes optimized for individual devices. However, the market segment, along with new entrants in the legacy market, was creating price volatility, according to Mohan. He made a differentiation between legacy products like DDR4 and HBM or LPDDR5, and said the company expected its blending average selling price to "continue improving due to the increasing share of high-value products like HBM." Earlier this month, Samsung's performance was so bad that its execs formally apologized, a rare action from the chaebol. The company is yet to release its full results, which are expected October 31. Samsung's preliminary results showed it missed profit expectations. Its report listed ₩9.1 trillion ($6.8 billion), a number almost ₩1 trillion ($725 million) less than the expected ₩10 trillion ($7.4 billion). ®

SK Hynix Profit Momentum Continues on AI-Chip Demand -- Update

SK Hynix posted record earnings in the third quarter as it continued to ride strong demand for powerful computing chips to support artificial-intelligence applications. The South Korean memory-chip maker, a main supplier of advanced high-bandwidth-memory products to AI-chip giant Nvidia, has been in the black since it swung to a net profit in the first quarter of 2024 after five straight quarters of losses. Higher chip prices--led by premium HBM products and high-capacity enterprise solid-state drives for AI servers--resulted in quarterly records for revenue, operating profit and net profit during the third quarter, the company said Thursday. Net profit for the July-September period was 5.753 trillion won, equivalent to $4.17 billion, compared with a loss a year earlier and up 40% from the prior quarter. That beat a FactSet-compiled consensus estimate of 5.037 trillion won. Revenue for the quarter surged 94% from a year ago to 17.573 trillion won, while operating profit came in at 7.030 trillion won. SK Hynix said sales of HBM products, in particular, stood out, rising more than 70% from the previous quarter and more than quadrupling from the same period last year. The company has pulled ahead of rivals Micron and Samsung Electronics in the highly advanced DRAM chip market. It began mass producing more advanced 12-layer HBM3E products last month and plans to supply the high-performance and upgraded chips to customers by the end of 2024. SK Hynix said it expects HBM products to account for 40% of its DRAM revenue in the final quarter of the year, up from 30% in the third quarter. Most analysts expect the strong AI-driven chip demand to persist through 2025.

SK hynix leads AI memory market with record Q3 earnings

Participants visit SK hynix's booth at SEDEX 2024 semiconductor exhibition at COEX in southern Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap Chipmaker expects HBM to account for 40% of total sales next yearBy Nam Hyun-woo SK hynix announced record-high quarterly earnings in the third quarter of this year, Thursday, fueling expectations that it could overtake Samsung Electronics as Korea's most profitable chipmaker by the end of this year. SK hynix's earnings Revenues reached 17.57 trillion won ($12.72 billion) during the July-to-September period, up 93.8 percent year-on-year, while operating profit stood at 7.03 trillion won, swinging to the black from a 1.79 trillion won operating loss a year ago. Operating margin climbed to an impressive 40 percent. These figures represent SK hynix's highest-ever quarterly performance. Revenues rose to a new peak after reaching 16.42 trillion won in the second quarter. Operating profit significantly surpassed the 6.47 trillion won achieved in the third quarter of 2018, when the semiconductor industry was in a lucrative upcycle. Earlier this month, rival chipmaker Samsung Electronics projected an operating profit of 9.1 trillion won for the third quarter, with the market estimating that earnings from its chip businesses would range from 4 trillion won to 4.4 trillion won. Given SK hynix's strong earnings in recent quarters and positive expectations for the fourth quarter, the company is poised to overtake Samsung Electronics and become Korea's most profitable chipmaker when the yearly results are tallied at the end of the year. A visitor points to SK hynix's AI accelerator AiMX displayed at SEDEX 2024 semiconductor exhibition at COEX in southern Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap SK hynix's growth is driven by the rising demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, which are essential for powering artificial intelligence (AI) processors. "Strong demand for AI memory continued among datacenter customers, prompting the company to expand sales of high-value products like HBM and eSSD, which contributed to achieving the highest revenue in its history," the company said during a conference call. "Sales of HBM increased by 70 percent from the second quarter and 330 percent from the third quarter of last year, driving the company's overall sales growth," the company added. SK hynix noted that HBM comprised 30 percent of total sales in the third quarter and is projected to increase to 40 percent in the fourth quarter. The company also noted that the shipping volume of fifth-generation HBM3e chips has surpassed that of fourth-generation HBM3 during the third quarter. Deliveries of advanced 12-layer HBM3e chips are expected to proceed as scheduled in the fourth quarter. These 12-layer products are anticipated to make up more than half of the total HBM3e chips produced in the first half of next year. SK hynix's 12-layer HBM3e / Courtesy of SK hynix The 12-layer HBM3e chip is recognized as the most advanced HBM semiconductor currently in mass production. In September, SK hynix became the first in the industry to mass-produce these chips. The company provided an optimistic outlook for its HBM business next year, noting that it has already finalized discussions on delivery terms and pricing with customers. Chief Financial Officer Kim Woo-hyun said demand is expected to exceed initial projections due to clients' investments in AI processors. "We expect upside movements in demand and downside movements in supply, meaning demand will remain outpacing supply next year," Kim said. "This is why we believe customers are looking to establish long-term supply contracts for HBM." SK hynix acknowledged that while it is investing to meet next year's demand, it is facing limitations in manufacturing capacity. To address this, the company plans to reduce legacy manufacturing processes, such as those for HBM3 and DDR4 chips, and expand its capacity for producing HBM3e chips.

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix posts record Q3 profit, beats forecasts

SEOUL, Oct 24 (Reuters) - South Korea's SK Hynix (000660.KS), opens new tab on Thursday posted a record quarterly profit as the Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab supplier saw strong sales of its advanced chips such as high bandwidth memory (HBM) ones used in generative AI chipsets. The world's second-biggest memory chipmaker reported a 7 trillion won ($5.07 billion) operating profit for the July-September quarter versus a 1.8 trillion won loss a year earlier. Advertisement · Scroll to continue That compared with a 6.8 trillion won average forecast by LSEG SmartEstimate, which is weighted toward analysts who are more consistently accurate. SK Hynix has outperformed rivals Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab and Micron Technology (MU.O), opens new tab in recent quarters, as it benefits the most from AI-driven appetite for high-end memory chips following its early entry and large investments in HBM chip development. Advertisement · Scroll to continue Revenue for the quarter rose 94% year-on-year to 17.6 trillion won. ($1 = 1,379.9600 won) Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Joyce Lee; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

SK Hynix Posts Record Profit After AI Demand Powers On

SK Hynix Inc. posted record quarterly profit and revenue, reflecting strong demand for the memory chips used with Nvidia Corp. processors for artificial intelligence development. The South Korean chipmaker recorded an operating profit of 7.03 trillion won ($5.1 billion) in the September quarter, versus the 6.9 trillion won projected. Revenue climbed 94% to 17.6 trillion won, compared with expectations for 18.2 trillion won.

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix posts record Q3 profit, beats forecasts

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's SK Hynix on Thursday posted a record quarterly profit as the Nvidia supplier saw strong sales of its advanced chips such as high bandwidth memory (HBM) ones used in generative AI chipsets. The world's second-biggest memory chipmaker reported a 7 trillion won ($5.07 billion) operating profit for the July-September quarter versus a 1.8 trillion won loss a year earlier. That compared with a 6.8 trillion won average forecast by LSEG SmartEstimate, which is weighted toward analysts who are more consistently accurate. (Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Joyce Lee; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix sees no AI chip oversupply as profit soars to record

SK Hynix has outperformed rivals Samsung Electronics and Micron Technology in recent quarters, as it has benefited the most from AI-driven appetite for high-end memory chips following its early entry and large investments in HBM chip development.South Korea's SK Hynix on Thursday posted a record quarterly profit as the Nvidia supplier booked strong sales of its advanced chips, and said demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips would continue to outpace supply next year. The company played down market concerns about an oversupply of the chips used in generative AI chipsets, saying production of higher-margin HBM chips was limited due to technological challenges, while demand was proving stronger than expected. "We believe that it is premature to talk about demand slowdown for AI chips and HBM at this point," Kim Kyu Hyun, SK Hynix's head of DRAM marketing said on a conference call, citing ever-increasing requirements for computing power. The world's second-biggest memory chipmaker swung to an operating profit of 7 trillion won ($5.07 billion) for the July-September quarter from a loss a year earlier. That compared with a 6.8 trillion won average forecast by LSEG SmartEstimate, which is weighted toward analysts who are more consistently accurate. SK Hynix has outperformed rivals Samsung Electronics and Micron Technology in recent quarters, as it has benefited the most from AI-driven appetite for high-end memory chips following its early entry and large investments in HBM chip development. Its bigger rival Samsung earlier this month warned its third-quarter profit would come in below market expectations and apologised for the disappointing performance, citing delays in sales of its high-end HBM3E chips to an unidentified major customer. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said on Wednesday a design flaw with its latest Blackwell AI chips, which impacted production, had been fixed with the help of Taiwanese manufacturing partner TSMC . Those AI chipsets use HBMs made by SK Hynix, analysts say. SK Hynix said HBM sales showed strong growth, up more than 70% from the previous quarter. Total revenue for the quarter rose 94% year-on-year to 17.6 trillion won. "SK Hynix has reaffirmed its competitive edge in the HBM market. Its leading position as an HBM chip supplier is likely to continue next year," said Ko Yeongmin, an analyst at Daol Investment & Securities. Shares of SK Hynix were trading up 2.3% against a 0.1% fall in the benchmark KOSPI as of 0318 GMT. Its shares have jumped 38.5% so far this year, while Samsung's stock has slumped 24.7%. Samsung shares declined 2% on Thursday. SK Hynix sees HBM sales making up 40% of its total DRAM revenue in the fourth quarter, up from 30% in the third quarter, and added it expects memory chip demand for AI servers to grow further next year as global tech companies are racing to develop generative AI. The chipmaker plans to increase capital spending to the mid-to-high 10 trillion won range to help respond to higher-than-expected HBM demand, with a slight increase expected in 2025, CFO Kim Woo Hyun said. Last month, SK Hynix, the main supplier of HBM chips to Nvidia, said it had started mass production of HBM3E 12-layer chips and plans to supply the latest products to unidentified customers by the end of this year.

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix clocks record Q3 profit on AI boom By Investing.com

Investing.com-- South Korea's SK Hynix Inc (KS:000660) on Thursday clocked a stronger-than-expected third-quarter profit as the memory chip giant saw strong sales of its advanced chips for use in artificial intelligence applications. The firm, which is a major supplier to AI darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), posted an operating profit of 7.03 trillion won ($5.07 billion) for the three months to September 30, more than Reuters estimates for a profit of 6.8 trillion won. SK Hynix had logged a 1.8 trillion won loss last year. SK Hynix's revenue nearly doubled to 17.57 trillion won. The firm said that demand for memory from the AI sector, especially in data centers, was a major driver of its earnings. The firm has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom over the past year, given that it makes the most advanced high-bandwith memory chips that are used in AI chipsets. It is also the world's second-largest memory chip maker by volume, behind Samsung Electronics (LON:0593xq) Co Ltd (KS:005930). HBM sales surged 70% from the prior quarter and were up 330% from last year, SK Hynix said. Nvidia is a key source of this demand, with SK Hynix largely outpacing rivals Samsung and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) in recent quarters on this trend. The firm had in September said it had started mass production of its latest generation of HBM chips, which are the most advanced memory chips available in the market. Shares of the firm were trading up nearly 38% so far in 2024, although they were off record highs hit earlier in the year.

Nvidia Supplier SK Hynix Reports Record-Breaking Quarterly Profit As AI Demand Drives 7% Revenue Surge - NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA), SK Hynix (OTC:HXSCF)

SK Hynix HXSCF, a major memory chipmaker and a key supplier to Nvidia Corp. NVDA, has announced a record-breaking quarterly profit, driven by the rising demand for artificial intelligence technology. What Happened: The South Korean semiconductor company posted revenues of 17.5731 trillion won ($12.65 billion), a 7% increase from the previous quarter. Operating profit surged to 7.03 trillion won ($5.06 billion), and net profit reached 5.7534 trillion won ($4.14 billion), marking significant gains from last year. This marks SK Hynix's highest-ever quarterly revenue, surpassing the previous record of 16.4233 trillion won set in the second quarter of 2024. The company attributed this growth to increasing sales of premium memory products, such as high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and enterprise solid-state drives (eSSD), which cater to the booming demand for AI servers. In the third quarter, HBM accounted for 30% of SK Hynix's total DRAM revenue, with sales of the product jumping more than 70% quarter-over-quarter. The company expects HBM's share to rise to 40% in the fourth quarter as it ramps up production of the newer 8-layer and 12-layer HBM3E models, reflecting strong demand from data centers and AI developers. "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 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." SK Hynix projects the demand for AI memory to remain robust in 2025, fueled by advancements in generative AI and artificial general intelligence. Additionally, the company expects steady growth in the PC and mobile markets, which have lagged behind the AI sector. The company plans to enhance its NAND operations by expanding sales of high-capacity eSSDs and optimizing production efficiency. It will also continue transitioning to more advanced DRAM technologies, securing its leadership in the AI memory market. See Also: Jay-Z, Praised by Warren Buffett as 'The Guy to Learn From,' Once Said He Wasn't Taught Emotional Intelligence, But How To Survive -- The Rap Legend's Growth Has Made Him Not Just A Better Person, But Also Worth $2.5B Today Why It Matters: This announcement comes after a period of volatility for SK Hynix. In September, the company's shares plummeted to their lowest level since February following a downgrade by Morgan Stanley. The investment bank warned that "memory conditions are beginning to deteriorate," and that it would be challenging for SK Hynix to maintain revenue growth and margins. However, the company's fortunes quickly turned around when it announced the mass production of its latest high-bandwidth memory chips. This development, which positioned SK Hynix ahead in the competitive race to meet the growing demand driven by AI advancements, led to a 9% surge in the company's shares. Analysts have long been optimistic about SK Hynix's future, with many predicting that the company will continue to benefit from the increasing demand for AI technology. In July, for example, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup both raised their stock-price targets for SK Hynix, citing the high potential for AI and the anticipation of a positive surprise in the company's earnings. Price Action: SK Hynix is currently trading at 1,98,300 won, with a surge of 1.17% on Thursday. The stock has gained 39.26% year-to-date, according to data from Benzinga Pro. Read Next: Jim Cramer Says This Energy Stock Is A Buy: 'It Can Make Money Even At These Levels' Image via SK Hynix Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

SK hynix swings to black in Q3, recording highest quarterly sales, profit

SK hynix swings to black in Q3, recording highest quarterly sales, profit This picture shows SK hynix's headquarters in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, July 25. Yonhap SK hynix said Thursday its third-quarter sales and profit hit all-time highs on robust demand for its premium artificial intelligence memory chips. The world's second-largest memory chipmaker posted an operating profit of 7.03 trillion won ($5.09 billion), shifting from a loss of 1.79 trillion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. The operating profit was 3.2 percent higher than the average estimate, according to a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency. Its sales shot up 93.8 percent on-year to 17.57 trillion won, and its net income totaled 5.75 trillion won, swinging from a deficit of 2.18 trillion won a year ago. Its quarterly revenue, operating income and net income are all record highs for the quarter. The third-quarter sales exceeded the previous record of 16.4 trillion won in the second quarter of this year. Its operating profit and net profit renewed the previous records of 6.47 trillion won and 4.69 trillion won, respectively, in the third quarter of 2018 during the semiconductor super boom. SK hynix attributed the strong bottom line to demand for AI memory chips, including high-bandwidth memory products and embedded solid state drives (eSSDs). "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," SK hynix said. (Yonhap)