The Samsung Electronics booth at the IFA Consumer Electronics and Home Appliances trade fair in Berlin.
(Bloomberg) — Samsung Electronics Co. shares closed at an all-time high, riding investor enthusiasm for its potential in artificial intelligence chips and renewed confidence in its conventional memory business.
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Its stock rose 6.1% to 94,400 won ($66) in Seoul on Friday, as the market resumed trading after a weeklong holiday. Shares of South Korea’s largest company are up 77% this year, pushing its market capitalization to $393.5 billion.
Investors are betting that Samsung can catch up to smaller rival SK Hynix Inc. in the supply of high-bandwidth memory to Nvidia Corp. and others for AI applications. A blockbuster supply deal with OpenAI for both Korean firms has been another tailwind.
“Samsung’s discount is resolving when it comes to supplying Nvidia with high-bandwidth memory and ongoing large scale investments in AI,” said Shawn Oh, an equities trader at NH Investment & Securities Co. “It is said that Nvidia and Samsung are in the final stages of negotiating supply volumes, prices, and schedules.”
Meanwhile, the Samsung-dominated markets for legacy DRAM and NAND chips are expected to enjoy a “supercycle” as supply shortages boost the price outlook.
Morgan Stanley analysts raised their price target for Samsung 14% to 111,000 won during the break, pointing to a sharp rise in fourth-quarter memory chip pricing and a robust demand cycle expected to stretch well into 2026, setting the stage for “much higher upside from here.”
After mostly missing out on the global AI rally earlier this year, Samsung shares closed September with their best monthly performance since 2020. Unlike its previous peak in 2021, which was driven by a local retail investor frenzy amid the pandemic, foreign investors have pushed the stock to its latest milestone.
The big gains in Samsung as well as SK Hynix, which is up 146% in 2025, have helped make South Korea one of the best-performing stock markets this year. The benchmark Kospi is up 50% year to date.
“Samsung’s finally having its AI moment,” said Haris Khurshid, chief investment officer at Chicago-based Karobaar Capital LP. “What’s interesting is this rally isn’t just about chips, it’s about belief because investors have decided Samsung’s not missing this wave like it did early on, and now seems like everyone’s racing to reprice the gap.”
