SK Hynix Draws Domestic Buyers While US Licence Queue Holds Up Its American Blueprint

Institutional investors moved into SK Hynix on Monday, absorbing part of the steady flow of shares being sold by overseas funds. The stock gained 0.7% on the day. Media reports suggest the continued capital withdrawal from abroad makes it too early to call a turnaround, though domestic money has clearly been stepping into the gap.

The buying followed a sharp selloff. Foreign investors sold a net 5.4 trillion won of SK Hynix shares between 2 and 6 November, according to media reports, trimming the overseas stake in the chipmaker to 48.27%. South Korean retail investors picked up 2.2 trillion won worth over the same stretch, and institutions added a further 1.4 trillion won — meaning buyers at home were already facing down the foreign sellers in the middle of the rout. Institutional players were said to have treated the earlier losses as an entry point, with support coming from a rebound in US semiconductor stocks that prompted Korean investors to snap up beaten-down chip names.

Capacity Sold Forward, and a Target Price Trimmed

The trading backdrop sits alongside a business that has locked in a large share of its future output. SK Hynix reported on 28 October that demand was outstripping supply, with long-term agreements covering more than 50% of production capacity for 2027–2028. Management expected the memory shortage to persist until 2030.

Those results for the third quarter of 2026 showed revenue of 104.6 trillion won and an operating profit of 83.3 trillion won. The company also planned shareholder distributions of roughly 100 trillion won for 2026, and at the time expected HBM4 to become its leading HBM product in the fourth quarter of 2026. Industry figures, cited in media reports on Friday, saw no sign that customers had cancelled supply contracts or cut their order volumes.

On the valuation side, IBK Investment & Securities reaffirmed its buy rating on 29 October but cut its price target to 3.2 million KRW from 4 million KRW. The brokerage pointed to the gap between the share price and its estimated intrinsic value — not to any weakening in memory market fundamentals.

Washington Paperwork and a US Reorganisation

Meanwhile, SK Hynix is preparing further executive appointments in the United States and an operational reshuffle around 3 December, according to reports on Monday, part of a planned expansion of its US headcount. The SK Group said the changes are meant to deepen collaboration with AI customers such as Nvidia at early stages of development.

Access to American manufacturing equipment remains the sticking point for the investment plans. SK Hynix said on Wednesday that it continues to bring US-made tools into its Dalian plant under an existing export licence, and that talks over next year's authorisation are ongoing. The company also said it has not yet finalised a concrete investment plan for a US fab. Reuters reported on 3 November that US authorities had not yet approved requested licences for additional equipment to expand production in Dalian — a hold-up that, according to Reuters, complicated reported investment plans by Solidigm in New York, where SK Hynix intended to use higher Dalian output to help finance the US expansion.