SK Hynix (SKHY) shares fell about 9% in Seoul on Tuesday, October 13, after China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) said it had made progress on a denser DRAM design. The company’s US-listed ADRs closed at $162.23 on Monday and trade again tonight.
This wasn’t a one-stock sell-off. South Korea’s Kospi was down 7.4% at midday, at its lowest level since late July, after triggering the first sell-side trading curb in nearly two months.
What CXMT Claimed
- CXMT says its “4F²” cell layout fits more memory into the same chip area (no independent verification yet).
- It plans to ship server memory using the design by the end of 2026.
- Saxo strategist Charu Chanana told Reuters the CXMT news was “a clear trigger for the selloff in memory stocks.”
- US chip stocks had already slid Monday, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down 2.7%.
SK Hynix’s Margin Is What’s at Risk
SK Hynix’s gross margin went from 0.71% in the September 2023 quarter to 79.27% in the March 2026 quarter, and it rose again in June. That includes 22 points added in just two quarters after September 2025.
Margins that high depend on tight supply. If CXMT can produce the denser DRAM at scale and competitive prices, it could pressure industry pricing. The 2023 low shows how sharply SK Hynix’s margins can deteriorate during a memory downturn. The question for holders is where 80% goes in 2027.
Samsung Got Hit Too
Samsung Electronics (A005930) fell 7.7% on the same trigger. Micron (MU), another major DRAM producer exposed to increased Chinese competition, dropped about 4% on Monday.
SKHY Stock vs. the Street
The mean target of $252 sits 55% above Monday’s close, with nine buys, five outperforms and one underperform. That mean hasn’t moved since September 30, even though the ADR lost 12% over that stretch. A drop the size of Seoul’s tonight would leave SKHY near $148, below the Street’s lowest target of $152.
Watch whether analysts revise their targets following CXMT’s announcement. The implied upside will depend on both those targets and SKHY’s share price.
Want to see how far SK Hynix’s margins have run, or watch whether analysts start cutting targets? Pull up the same charts and Street data on TIKR for free. Learn more here.
So what is SK Hynix stock actually worth?
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Disclaimer:
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