[Yonhap]
[Yonhap]

As the Kospi continues to set all-time highs, analysts have again raised their price targets for Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, the two chipmakers driving the market's rally.

Shinhan Investment on Tuesday maintained buy ratings on both SK hynix and Samsung Electronics, lifting its price targets for each, citing semiconductor price gains that have exceeded expectations.

Shinhan Investment raised its price target for SK hynix to 4.2 million won from 3.8 million won ($2,470), keeping the stock as its top pick in the sector. SK hynix closed at 2.63 million won on Monday.

The brokerage also lifted its target for Samsung Electronics to 590,000 won from 550,000 won. Samsung Electronics ended Monday's session at 323,000 won.

Senior researcher Kim Hyeong-tae and researcher Song Hye-su said in a report Tuesday that SK hynix's planned Nasdaq listing next month is becoming increasingly concrete, and that its status as the world's leading memory chip stock will come back into focus as a result.

The two analysts said the company is expected to maintain a gross margin above 80 percent, sustaining the highest profitability in the semiconductor industry. They added that its enterprise solid-state drive business in the NAND segment is also on track alongside its DRAM operations.

They also said that as SK hynix's profit contribution grows, the company is poised to benefit indirectly from valuation gains on its investment in Kioxia, the Japanese NAND flash memory maker.

On Samsung Electronics, the analysts said that while the overall capital expenditure timeline is being brought forward, a demand-driven environment is expected to persist. They noted that supply-demand imbalances are unlikely to be resolved in the near term and that price increases are set to continue.

They estimated that Samsung Electronics will achieve more than 80 trillion won in operating profit even after accounting for performance bonus provisions, with memory chips expected to account for 98 percent of the company's total operating profit and drive overall earnings.


yeonjoo7@heraldcorp.com