Key Points

Citing data from Nextrade, the report stated that the stock rose as high as 91,000 won (USD 65) during premarket hours. Samsung closed at 84,700 won (USD 60) on the Korea Exchange on Tuesday, up 1.44 per cent from the previous close.

"The rally followed reports that Samsung's fifth-generation, 12-layer HBM3E chips had passed Nvidia's quality tests just 18 months after development, fueling hopes for stronger orders. The HBM product is expected to be used in AI accelerators such as Nvidia's B300 and AMD's MI350. Expectations are growing that supply volumes for Amazon, Google and other big tech firms will rise sharply as demand for AI memory chips accelerates," the report said.

Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm, projected that surging artificial intelligence demand would usher in a memory "supercycle." Citing the firm's Sunday report, "Memory Supercycle - Rising AI Tide Lifting All Boats," the report noted that the US investment bank upgraded Korean semiconductors to "attractive" from "in-line" and raised Samsung's target price to 96,000 won (USD 68) from 86,000 won (USD 61), keeping the company as its "Top Pick."

The report said demand for AI servers, mobile DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) and other memory products would drive a supply-demand imbalance by 2026, pushing prices higher. It forecast a nine per cent increase in DRAM average selling prices in the fourth quarter. Orders for enterprise SSDs for 2026 delivery are already matching 2025's full-year volumes, it added, while HBM, DDR5 server modules and LPDDR5 for AI platforms were singled out as major growth engines.

"The recovery of Samsung's semiconductor division is outpacing expectations, and we see operating profit in the second half reaching 20.8 trillion won (USD 14.98 billion), the highest in four years," the report quoted Kim Dong-won, head of research at KB. Kim forecast the tech giant's net profit at 34 trillion won (USD 24.48 billion) this year and 52 trillion won (USD 37.44 billion) next year, up 16 per cent and 24 per cent from earlier estimates.

"Third-quarter earnings recovery, new foundry clients such as Qualcomm, and expectations of HBM4 adoption by Nvidia will underpin further upside," the report quoted Pak Yu-ak, analyst at Kiwoom Securities. "Despite the rebound, Samsung remains undervalued versus peers."

Global chipmakers, including Samsung, have also begun raising memory prices to capture swelling demand. Citing industry sources, the report noted that Samsung recently informed major clients it would increase fixed contract prices for DRAM in the fourth quarter by up to 30 per cent, depending on the product, while NAND flash prices would rise 5-10 per cent.

"The move follows similar hikes by Micron Technology and Western Digital's SanDisk unit, and analysts expect SK hynix to follow suit. Overnight, Wall Street's three main indexes hit record highs, buoyed by Nvidia's large-scale investment plans and Apple's strength, adding momentum to Korean chipmakers in Tuesday's session," the report said.

- ANI