SK Hynix Lists on U.S. Stock Market Amid Surging AI Chip Demand
The South Korean memory chip giant's U.S. offering is the largest initial share sale by a foreign company in the United States.
SK Hynix, a leading global memory chip manufacturer, has made its debut on the U.S. stock market, timed with a significant surge in demand for its products driven by the artificial intelligence boom. The company's American depositary receipts (ADRs) were priced at $149 each on Thursday, raising $26.5 billion from the sale of 177.9 million ADRs. This offering marks the largest initial share sale in the U.S. by a foreign company. Trading is expected to commence on the Nasdaq on Friday.
South Korea's second-largest chipmaker, alongside Samsung Electronics, already holds a dominant global position in high bandwidth memory (HBM), a critical component for advanced AI technologies. SK Hynix recently announced a partnership with Nvidia to supply advanced memory chips as global AI infrastructure expands.
The increasing demand for AI has fueled substantial profit growth for chipmakers. Memory chips have become more expensive due to supply constraints struggling to keep pace with AI advancements. This price increase has impacted other technology sectors, with Apple recently citing higher memory chip costs as a reason for price adjustments on Macs and iPads.
The U.S. represents SK Hynix's largest market, contributing 68.8% of its revenue last year. The company is further solidifying its U.S. presence by planning its first U.S. production facility in Indiana. In the fiscal year 2025, SK Hynix reported nearly $65 billion in revenue, with profits doubling to approximately $28 billion.
Globally, SK Hynix, Samsung, and the South Korean government have committed to investing a combined 800 trillion won (approximately $518 billion) to establish a new semiconductor manufacturing hub in the southwestern region of South Korea. This initiative is part of a broader national effort to diversify investment beyond the Seoul metropolitan area.
The strong performance of major chipmakers has significantly boosted stock values within the technology sector. Companies like Micron Technology have seen their stock values more than triple in recent years, while Nvidia experienced similar growth patterns previously. The outsized influence of these semiconductor giants has contributed to record highs in major stock market indexes, largely propelled by the tech sector's performance.
Shares of SK Hynix traded in Seoul saw a slight decrease of 0.3% on Friday.