SK hynix shares plunge after foreign brokerage cuts target price

SK hynix shares dropped nearly 8 percent early Thursday following a downgrade from a foreign brokerage firm. The shares were trading at 150,000 won ($112.4) as of 9:17 a.m., down 7.86 percent from the previous session and briefly falling below 150,000 won to 149,500 won.

Samsung Electronics also saw its stock decline by 2.33 percent, trading at 62,900 won, hitting a new 52-week low of 62,700 won during intraday trading. Other semiconductor stocks, including Hanmi Semiconductor (-6.13 percent) and DI (-5.23 percent), also saw significant declines.

The slump in semiconductor stocks, including SK hynix, appears to be driven by a report from Morgan Stanley, which raised concerns about the semiconductor industry over the Chuseok holiday. Morgan Stanley slashed SK hynix’s target price by 54 percent on September 15th, 2024, from 260,000 won to 120,000 won, while also downgrading its investment rating from “overweight” to “underweight.”

The report also revised Samsung Electronics’ target price down by about 27 percent, from 105,000 won to 76,000 won, citing decreased demand for smartphones and PCs as well as a drop in general DRAM prices and an oversupply of high-bandwidth memory (HBM).

Meanwhile, stocks related to renewable energy and abortion rights surged as U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, led former President Donald Trump in key swing states. Daemyoung Energy, classified as a renewable energy stock, saw its shares jump 12.51 percent to 17,720 won by 9:30 a.m. Other renewable energy stocks, including CS Wind (4.73 percent), SDN (7.57 percent), and SK oceanplant (2.03 percent), also saw gains, benefiting from Harris’s pro-environment policies.

Abortion-related stocks also rose as Harris’s stance in favor of abortion rights boosted investor expectations. Hyundai Pharmaceutical, which is reportedly working to introduce abortion medication in South Korea, surged 10.03 percent to 5,210 won.