Nvidia's earnings beat market expectations, easing concerns about an artificial intelligence (AI) bubble that had weighed on global equity markets. In Korea's stock market, expectations are again building for the semiconductor sector, led by Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS).
According to the financial investment industry on Wednesday, Nvidia posted first-quarter revenue of $81.62 billion (about 122.64 trillion won) and net profit of $58.3 billion (about 87.62 trillion won) for fiscal 2026. The figures represent year-on-year increases of 85% and 147%, respectively. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.87 also exceeded market forecasts.
Data center revenue surged 92% year-on-year to $75.2 billion, driven by explosive growth in demand for AI cloud services and enterprise AI. "The age of agentic AI has arrived, and demand is growing exponentially," Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said.
Market participants view the results as more than just strong earnings, seeing them as reaffirming that the AI industry's growth momentum remains intact. "Growth centered on AI-native cloud and sovereign AI is gaining full traction," Yuanta Securities said. "If this extends to expanded supply of Vera Rubin at year-end, Nvidia's high-growth trajectory is likely to continue."
Korean semiconductor companies are also expected to be direct beneficiaries. Nvidia's GPUs require high-bandwidth memory (HBM), and the global HBM market is currently led by SK hynix and Samsung Electronics. In particular, expanded investment in AI servers is fueling expectations for both rising memory prices and improved earnings at Korean chipmakers.
Brokerages have been raising their target prices for Samsung Electronics one after another. NH Investment & Securities lifted its target price for Samsung Electronics to 490,000 won from 310,000 won, while Shinhan Investment & Securities raised its target to 550,000 won from 300,000 won. NH Investment & Securities also raised its target price for SK hynix to 3.1 million won from 1.8 million won.
Short-term overheating, however, remains a variable. Despite Nvidia's strong earnings, its share price weakness suggests that market expectations had already been priced in. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix could also see profit-taking following their recent sharp gains.
Nevertheless, the market views the broader trend of expanding AI infrastructure investment as unlikely to reverse easily. As global big tech firms continue to compete in data center investment, the key beneficiaries are expected to be concentrated in the GPU and memory supply chains. "Stocks tied to the semiconductor and AI value chains are likely to lead the KOSPI's rise," Daishin Securities said in a recent report. "A strategy of expanding exposure centered on Samsung Electronics and SK hynix remains valid."
