Samsung Electronics estimated third-quarter operating profit of 107.4 trillion won, about 80 billion dollars, on AI memory demand, slightly above the LSEG consensus.
Samsung Electronics on Thursday estimated third-quarter operating profit of 107.4 trillion won, about 80.17 billion dollars, for July through September. Reuters said that was slightly above an LSEG SmartEstimate of 106.1 trillion won and would be the first time a technology company has topped 100 trillion won in quarterly operating profit.
Preliminary consolidated revenue was 195 trillion won, BusinessKorea reported, up 126.59 percent from a year earlier, with operating profit up 782.5 percent. The operating margin was about 55.1 percent. Cumulative revenue for the first three quarters was 500.37 trillion won and operating profit 254.13 trillion won, the Korean report said.
Reuters said this is Samsung's fourth straight record operating-profit quarter, tied to a memory shortage as AI infrastructure spending outruns supply. Samsung and Micron expect the imbalance to last into 2028, with Chinese competition and a possible slowdown in AI spending as risks. Rising chip costs are also squeezing smartphone margins.
Shares slipped 0.2 percent in early trade, against a 0.5 percent fall in the KOSPI. Mirae Asset analyst Kim Seok-hwan said the market focus had shifted to whether the earnings growth that started a year ago can last. Analysts expect fourth-quarter profit to rise 8.2 percent from the third quarter, slower than the prior sequential gain, as chip-price growth eases.
The figures are guidance, not audited results. Samsung did not publish a full divisional breakdown in the reports used here.
People Sentiments Positive
- Kim Seok-hwan of Mirae Asset said investors are now focused on whether the earnings surge can last.