SK Hynix Reports Strong First Quarter Results
SK Hynix Inc. has set all-time high numbers in quarterly revenue, operating profit and net income, as a result of rising memory chip prices despite seasonal factors.
The company's consolidated first quarter revenue totaled 6.29 trillion won while operating profit amounted to 2.47 trillion won and net income was 1.9 trillion won. Operating margin for the quarter that ended March 31, 2017 was 39% and net margin was 30%.
SK Hynix set the record-high quarterly revenue and operating profit thanks to favorable market conditions attributed to product price hikes during the first quarter, which has been traditionally off-season in the memory semiconductor industry. The revenue increased by 17% and the operating profit rose by 61% compared to the previous quarter.
Quarter-over-quarter, DRAM bit shipment decreased by 5% but the average selling price increased by 24%. The shipment declined due to a continuous DRAM short-supply caused by low inventory level at the beginning of the year and limited supply growth. The ASP rapidly rose, courtesy of strong demand from PC and server sectors.
For NAND Flash, the bit shipment decreased by 3% but the average selling price rose by 15%. The shipment declined due to limited supply growth related to low inventory level despite demand growth from mobile and SSD sectors. The ASP increase took place in every NAND Flash product category.
SK Hynix plans to speed up to further expand 2Znm DRAM and start to mass produce 1Xnm DRAM in the second half of this year. Also, the company will supply 48-Layer and 72-Layer 3D NAND to high density mobile and SSD markets.