Samsung posts $6.7 billion in operating profits in Q3 following rare apology

Samsung has officially reported its Q3 2024 results, covering the months of July to September, with KRW 9.18 billion in operating profits (approx. $6.7 billion). The South Korean tech giant has previously issued a rare apology to fans and investors for missing the forecast earlier this month.

Samsung Vice Chairman Jun Young-hyun acknowledged the “crisis” surrounding the company due to delayed high-end HBM3E chip sales and heightened competition from SK Hynix and Chinese chipmakers. The company missed analysts’ profit expectations, projected at $7.7 billion.

“The performance that fell short of market expectations has raised concerns about the fundamental technological competitiveness and the future of the company,” he says in the memo.

The Memory Division also experienced robust demand from the AI and server markets, prioritizing high-density DRAM and NAND products. This update comes at a pivotal moment, as Samsung prepares to launch its new 24Gb GDDR7 DRAM, expected to reach speeds of 40Gbps, by 2025.

Still, it’s a slightly better-than-expected result compared to the guidance overall, though its chip business saw a 40% drop to KRW 3.86 trillion ($2.8 billion) from the previous quarter. The revenue came at KRW 79.1 trillion (approx. $57.5 billion).

While AI-driven demand boosted its advanced chip sales, demand for mobile and PC chips was weaker, and it faced more competition from older tech in China.

“The strength of the Korean won against the U.S. dollar resulted in a negative impact on company-wide operating profit of about KRW 0.5 trillion compared to the previous quarter,” the company mentions.