SK Hynix Posts Record Revenue While Big Tech Competes to Finance Its Chip Lines

SK Hynix posts record 72% profit margin as AI memory demand soars; customers offer to finance production lines. Nvidia earnings on May 20 key for pricing power.

The balance of power in the semiconductor supply chain has shifted so dramatically that customers are now lining up to pay for SK Hynix's own production equipment. Offers include financing entire dedicated memory production lines and covering the cost of ASML's latest lithography machines—each carrying a price tag of roughly $400 million. The names whispered in these talks include Nvidia, Google and Amazon, though SK Hynix has declined to identify any suitor.

The company is taking a measured approach. It says it is reviewing "various structural alternatives that differ from conventional long-term contracts." The caution is understandable: committing to fixed-price supply deals could force SK Hynix to sell chips below market rates if AI-driven demand pushes prices even higher. That risk is real. CFO Kim Woo-hyun has publicly stated that demand will outpace supply for at least the next three years, particularly for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) products.

The numbers leave little doubt about the company's leverage. In the first quarter of 2026, SK Hynix posted record revenue of 52.6 trillion won, with operating profit soaring to 37.6 trillion won—a margin of 72 percent. The stock reflects the momentum: shares closed Friday at 1,680,000 Korean won, up 4.93 percent on the day and 30.64 percent for the week. Since the start of the year, the equity has surged 148.15 percent and now trades 57.17 percent above its 50-day moving average.

Yet the market remains painfully tight. "Available capacity is basically zero right now," a person familiar with the situation told a source. Cloud and tech giants have already pushed for longer DRAM supply agreements with both SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, signaling how broadly the fear of memory shortages has spread. The company's own expansion plans are accelerating but still take time.

The M15X facility is a key piece of the puzzle. SK Hynix expects to complete the first clean room in May 2026—two months ahead of schedule—and begin pilot production. The plant is designed to turn out 55,000 to 60,000 wafers per month, primarily HBM3E and HBM4. Samples of HBM4E are slated for the second half of this year, with commercial shipments starting in 2027. The total investment in M15X has already surpassed 20 trillion won.

An even bigger bet is the Yongin cluster. The first fab phase there is scheduled for completion in May 2027, with six clean rooms to be added gradually through 2030. At full capacity, the site could produce roughly 350,000 additional wafers per month. While that would go a long way toward easing the crunch, the timeline means supply will remain constrained for years.

The next major test comes on May 20, when Nvidia reports earnings after the US market close. For SK Hynix, the most important part is not the quarter itself but the guidance on AI accelerator demand and HBM appetite. A strong forecast would give the memory maker even more room to negotiate pricing on its own terms. A weaker signal, however, could make the stock's recent steep run look more vulnerable.