Major Bank Rating | Citi: Raises SK Hynix target price to 1.7 million KRW, expects Q1 operating profit to increase 426% year-on-year

Glonghui, April 9th | Citigroup released a report estimating SK hynix's Q1 operating profit at 3.91 trillion KRW (approximately $26.41 billion), representing a 104% quarter-on-quarter increase and a 426% year-on-year rise, driven by higher memory prices and sustained HBM sales in Q1. The pricing of 64GB server DDR5 DRAM is expected to remain strong until the second half of the year. The bank believes that HBM demand and binding long-term supply agreements (LTA) for commodity memory will extend earnings visibility and reduce cyclicality. Reflecting the continued upward trend in DRAM and HBM demand and the ongoing structural transformation of the memory market, Citigroup reiterated its “Buy” rating on SK hynix, raising the target price from 1.55 million KRW to 1.7 million KRW.