Samsung Operating Profit Jumps 783% to 107.4 Trillion Won in Third Quarter
Key Facts
Samsung Electronics said on October 29 that operating profit reached 107.4 trillion won in the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, up 783% year over year and 20% from the previous quarter. Consolidated revenue rose 127% year over year to a record 195.3 trillion won, up 14% from the previous quarter. The company said revenue set a new quarterly record and that it had become the first technology company to exceed 100 trillion won in quarterly operating profit. The final figures were in line with the company’s guidance published on October 8, which estimated sales at about 195 trillion won and operating profit at about 107.40 trillion. The results reflect strong demand for chips used in AI systems, which drove the semiconductor business to generate most of the group’s profit.
The Device Solutions division, which includes the semiconductor business, posted revenue of 147.1 trillion won and operating profit of 106.5 trillion in the third quarter. The division’s profit accounted for most of the total operating profit of 107.4 trillion won. But it was slightly below analysts’ estimate of 107.3 trillion won, according to Reuters. This leaves a different picture for expectations at the group and division levels: total operating profit matched Samsung’s previous guidance, while semiconductor profit narrowly missed analysts’ estimate. In the second quarter, the company reported record operating profit of 89.5 trillion won and revenue of 171.5 trillion, while Device Solutions operating profit then reached 89.2 trillion won.
Samsung said its memory business posted another record quarter by steering its product mix toward AI applications, as capacity constraints limited supply. It added that strong server demand lifted market prices across applications and that AI-driven demand remained strong. The company also expanded sales of HBM4 chips. The Associated Press reported that rising demand for computer memory chips used in AI systems fueled record profit, and that July to September was the fourth consecutive quarter in which the company posted record profit and revenue. These factors put the memory business at the heart of the results, as the division relies on products aimed at AI infrastructure and servers.
The company’s capital expenditure reached 29 trillion won in the third quarter, and Samsung expects total capital expenditure for 2026 to reach about 84.4 trillion won. The company said spending on AI infrastructure would reach a historic level in 2027 as the AI ecosystem expands. It also expects AI-driven demand growth to outpace industry supply growth compared with 2026. In its results report, the Associated Press said Samsung expects demand for its AI-related chips to accelerate through 2027, outstripping supply as customers expand infrastructure. The company plans to focus on advanced memory chips and storage products designed for AI servers.
Samsung said the chip market would remain undersupplied through 2028 and that building new factories would take time despite increased capital spending by its chip division. The division’s capital expenditure rose 62% to 76.8 trillion won during 2026, according to Reuters. On supply contracts, the company said it had signed long-term agreements with 10 major customers and was in talks with 10 others. It aims for these agreements to cover 60% to 70% of its production capacity by 2030. Against the backdrop of industrial expansion, Samsung and SK Hynix announced plans in June for a joint investment of 800 trillion won in a new chipmaking complex in southwestern South Korea, according to the Associated Press.
Samsung shares fell as much as 6.2% in morning trading on October 29 after opening higher, while SK Hynix shares rose 0.7%, Reuters reported. An analyst at BNK said SK Hynix’s results and outlook exceeded market expectations, while Samsung made no changes to what it had previously announced in its guidance. Available coverage does not attribute Samsung’s share move to earnings alone. The company has also yet to finalize its next shareholder return policy or the final amount and plans for distributing the remainder of its 2026 returns. The board is scheduled to decide on these details at its meeting in late January 2027, after which the company will announce its decisions.