Samsung Electronics reported a 21% increase in third-quarter net profit to 12.22 trillion won on October 30. The semiconductor division's record performance, driven by the AI boom, led the gains. Operating profit surged 32.5% to 12.16 trillion won, beating market expectations.
Samsung Electronics reported revenue of 86.06 trillion won for the July-September period, up 8.8% from a year earlier, according to a regulatory filing. This marked the company's largest quarterly sales, with net profit beating analysts' average estimate of 10.13 trillion won.
The semiconductor division achieved a record operating profit of 7 trillion won, sharply up from 400 billion won in the second quarter and 3.9 trillion won in the third quarter of 2024. The surge was partly driven by strong sales of high bandwidth memory (HBM) products amid the AI boom. "The memory business achieved record-high quarterly revenue by expanding HBM3E sales while proactively addressing strong demand across all applications," the company stated in a release. HBM3E is in mass production and sold to all customers, while HBM4 samples are being shipped to key clients. A favorable price environment and reduced one-off costs, such as inventory adjustments, boosted profits.
The foundry business hit record-high customer orders. The Device Experience (DX) division, covering mobile, TV, and home appliances, posted 3.5 trillion won in operating profit, aided by popular foldable smartphones. The mobile sector earned 3.6 trillion won, thanks to the strong launch of the Galaxy Z Fold7 and improved tablet and wearable sales. However, the visual display arm reported a 100 billion won operating loss due to intensified competition.
According to The Korea Times, the Device Solutions (DS) division saw sales of 33.1 trillion won and operating profit of 7 trillion won, up 13% and 79.5% year-on-year. Smartphone sales reached 34.1 trillion won with 3.6 trillion won profit, but the home appliance business incurred a 0.1 trillion won loss due to slowing TV markets and U.S. tariffs. Samsung Display recorded 8.1 trillion won in sales and 1.2 trillion won in operating profit, with profit down 20% from 1.51 trillion won a year ago.
Looking ahead, Samsung anticipates new opportunities in both DS and DX divisions from AI growth. Facility investments for 2025 are projected at 47.4 trillion won. Shares traded at 104,300 won, up 3.78%, after the market opened.