SK Hynix and Micron Technology join elite group of companies with market values exceeding $1 trillion.

By Kwanwoo Jun Memory-chip makers SK Hynix and Micron Technology have joined an elite group of companies with market values exceeding $1 trillion amid the artificial-intelligence-driven chip boom. Shares of the world's second-largest memory-chip maker SK Hynix have more than tripled this year. On Wednesday, they closed 9.3% higher, bringing the South Korean firm's market capitalization to 1.599 quadrillion won, equivalent to $1.061 trillion. On Tuesday, Micron also reached the $1 trillion market-cap milestone, with its stock jumping 19% to close at $895.88. UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri raised his 12-month price target for the U.S. chip maker threefold to $1,625, while increasing his sales and earnings estimates for 2027 through 2029. As the global AI infrastructure build out continues, chip makers stand to benefit from tighter supplies of high-performance computing chips and higher prices for memory products. SK Hynix became the second South Korean company to cross the $1 trillion market-value threshold after the world's largest memory-chip maker Samsung Electronics, which surpassed the mark earlier this month. The two South Korean companies trail the world's largest contract chip maker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Asia's first trillion-dollar company. Memory chips have recently emerged as some of the world's most profitable products, with investors piling into the tech sector as chip demand is unlikely to cool anytime soon. SK Hynix--alongside its home-country rival Samsung and U.S.-based Micron--dominates the world's advanced AI memory-chip market led by Nvidia. SK Hynix, which has led the high-bandwidth-memory market by developing and supplying HBM3 and HBM3E products to Nvidia ahead of its rivals, in April posted a fivefold jump in quarterly net profit on surging demand. Net profit surged around 400% from a year earlier to a record 40 trillion won for the three months ended March, well above street views, with both revenue and operating profit also rising to quarterly records, according to SK Hynix. Memory chips act like fuel lines for computing engines. As AI processors from Nvidia and others grow more powerful, they require more memory, including both conventional chips and advanced high-bandwidth memory. SK Hynix executives have said that they expect chip demand to continue outpacing supply over the next three years, especially for HBM products. Mirae Asset Securities analyst Kim Young-gun said Wednesday that undersupply in DRAM and NAND--the two main memroy-chip types--is expected to continue through 2028. Kim raised his target price for SK Hynix by 19% to 3.8 million won, expecting the average selling prices of the company's DRAM and NAND products to rise 184% and 231%, respectively this year. The company continues to ramp up investment to boost production capacity, as customers are scrambling to secure available supplies of cutting-edge semiconductors for AI data centers, smartphones and other devices. It is planning to list in the U.S. this year as it raises funds for investments to meet demand for advanced chips driven by the AI boom. SK Hynix said in March it had filed an application with the Securities and Exchange Commission to list American depositary receipts. A U.S. listing could attract more global investors to help fund the company's ambitious investment plans. Write to Kwanwoo Jun at [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires 05-27-26 0344ET

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