Samsung Q3 Revenue: 67T KRW, -12%, Chip Loss 3.75T KRW

Samsung Electronics has unveiled its Q3 2023 financial report, revealing total sales of 67.4047 trillion Korean Won, marking a 12.21% decrease compared to the same quarter last year. Net income declined by 40%, amounting to 5.5 trillion Korean Won, while operating profit reached 2.4336 trillion Korean Won, signifying a significant 77.57% decrease. The current net profit for the quarter stands at 5.8441 trillion Korean Won, reflecting a decline of 37.76%.

Despite a year-over-year drop in net income during Q3, Samsung Electronics has demonstrated a noteworthy improvement when compared to the previous quarter, exceeding the expectations of industry analysts.

In the third quarter, Samsung's pivotal semiconductor chip division continued to report operational losses, registering an operating loss of 3.75 trillion Korean Won. This represents an improvement from the previous quarter when the division incurred a loss of 4.4 trillion Korean Won. Despite a promising uptick in prices for DRAM and NAND storage chips, persistent market challenges within the storage sector, coupled with reduced demand for smartphones and personal computers, continued to impact Samsung's financial performance.

In a positive turn of events, Samsung's mobile device panel business saw significant profitability growth as leading smartphone brands, like Apple, launched flagship models, such as the iPhone 15 series.

Samsung Electronics anticipates that chip prices will experience an upturn in Q4, primarily driven by the increasing demand for these components, bolstered by the ongoing development of artificial intelligence applications. The company has outlined an overall capital expenditure for the year, with an estimated value of approximately 53.7 trillion Korean Won. A significant portion of this, specifically 47.5 trillion Korean Won, has been allocated to investments in the semiconductor sector. This allocation reflects a slight reduction compared to the previous year's investment of 47.9 trillion Korean Won.

Notably, Samsung is actively striving to close the gap with SK Hynix, which currently serves as the exclusive supplier for Nvidia's next-generation product, HBM memory. Samsung's strategic vision includes doubling its HBM production capacity by the year 2024.