Samsung expects disappointing dip in operating profit for Q3 2024 while sales continue to surge

Samsung has just released its earnings guidance for Q3 2024, covering the period from July to September 2024.

The South Korean tech giant said it expects 79 trillion Korean won (KRW) (approx. $58.5 billion US Dollars) in sales and an operating profit of around 9.1 trillion won ($6.7 billion).

That’s a small dip in operating profit for the third quarter, considering Samsung’s big push for its latest products like the Galaxy Z Fold6, Flip6, and the hotly-anticipated Galaxy Ring, among others announced at the Galaxy Unpacked in Paris this summer. In the previous quarter, Samsung had an operating profit of 10.44 trillion KRW (approx. $7.7 billion)

But the overall sales are still looking good for now. Samsung expects slow & steady growth in this sector following 74.07 trillion KRW (approx. $54.9 billion) from Q2 2024 (April to June). In the same period last year, Samsung garnered actual sales of 67.40 trillion KRW ($49.9 billion) and an operating profit of 2.43 trillion KRW ($1.8 billion).

“The above estimates are based on K-IFRS (Korean International Financial Reporting Standards). Please note that Korean disclosure regulations do not allow earnings estimates to be offered as a range,” Samsung mentions.

Samsung has been somewhat underperforming in the AI sector, which is reflected in the anticipated lower-than-expected profit for the third quarter despite analysts predicting 10.3 trillion won. The company has been facing stiff competition in the market from rivals like SK Hynix—a Nvidia partner—and Chinese firms, which impacted its semiconductor earnings.