Samsung, SK Hynix rebound after selloff: why Dell’s 16% surge matters

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix shares rebounded on Thursday after Dell Technologies provided evidence that demand for AI infrastructure remains strong.

Samsung rose 1.2% to 253,500 won in early Seoul trading, while SK Hynix gained 1.5% to 1.637 million won. Both had fallen more than 4% on Wednesday as oil prices and Treasury yields rose.

Overnight, Dell surged 15.8% after reporting record AI-server orders and a $95 billion backlog. For Korean memory investors, demand remains strong, while memory itself is still constraining supply.

Dell’s $95 billion backlog says AI demand is still running hot

Dell reported second-quarter revenue of $47 billion and adjusted earnings of $7.04 a share, ahead of Wall Street estimates.

For Samsung and SK Hynix, the company booked a record $60.9 billion in AI-server orders, generated $16.4 billion in AI-server revenue, and ended the quarter with a $95 billion backlog. Dell raised its AI-server revenue forecast to $74 billion from $60 billion.

Citi analyst Asiya Merchant called the quarter a “clear beat” amid “surging” demand, according to The Fly. Citi raised its Dell target to $600 from $515 and maintained a Buy rating.

Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring raised his target to $499 from $434.

He said the results showed companies were investing materially in AI across cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments, adding that “blowout” quarters could persist while supply remains tight and execution stays strong.

That is a powerful read-through for Korean chipmakers as AI infrastructure spending is still running ahead of the supply chain’s ability to satisfy it.

Dell’s biggest bottleneck is exactly what Samsung and SK Hynix sell

Dell’s commentary on supply constraints was even more relevant than the headline earnings beat.

Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke told investors that the biggest constraints remain “DRAM, DRAM, followed by NAND, NAND,” alongside shortages across other parts of the server supply chain.

That matters because Samsung and SK Hynix sit inside those bottlenecks. SK Hynix is a leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory used with AI accelerators, while Samsung supplies HBM, conventional DRAM and NAND.

Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh said Dell is benefiting from “strong tailwinds” from agentic AI and AI servers, particularly when combined with higher-margin storage. Mizuho raised its Dell target to $600 from $500 and kept an Outperform rating.

If server makers still cannot secure enough memory to meet demand, the pricing environment supporting Korean memory producers has not suddenly disappeared.

Wednesday’s selloff looks more macro than memory-driven

Samsung closed 4.0% lower on Wednesday and SK Hynix fell 4.7% as the KOSPI dropped almost 4%. Higher oil prices, elevated US Treasury yields and geopolitical tensions drove foreign selling across technology shares.

That pressure eased overnight. The US 10-year Treasury yield retreated from an intraday high around 4.82%, while Nvidia gained 3.2% and Micron rose 2.4%.

Kiwoom Securities analyst Han Ji-young told MoneyToday that recent weakness was unlikely to reflect individual company fundamentals. She instead pointed to “a temporary weakening of new buying momentum” amid short-term macro uncertainty.

Han added that stronger AI-semiconductor sales expectations could improve earnings momentum across leading chip stocks.

The macro risk has not vanished. Another surge in oil or bond yields could quickly pressure valuations again.

But Dell’s results make one point harder to ignore: the underlying AI-memory cycle remains strong. Dell is booking record server orders while naming DRAM and NAND among its biggest constraints.