Record $26.5bn SK Hynix US listing contrasts with 8% Seoul drop
SK Hynix's record $26.5 billion Nasdaq debut highlighted robust AI demand, but an 8% drop in its Seoul shares reflected investor scrutiny over near-term HBM4 shipments.
SK Hynix raised $26.5 billion in the largest-ever U.S. listing by a foreign company, pricing its American Depositary Receipts at $149. The ADRs closed up nearly 13% on their Nasdaq debut after opening about 14% higher, reflecting robust institutional appetite for artificial intelligence exposure. However, the company's domestic shares in Seoul fell as much as 8% on Monday.
The sharp divergence between the U.S. and Korean markets underscores the mechanical pressures of capital reallocation during major dual listings, compounded by broader weakness across Asian technology stocks. Investors in Seoul largely used the successful U.S. debut as a catalyst to book profits following a sustained recent rally in the Korean-listed shares.
Beyond routine profit-taking, the localized sell-off was driven by specific anxieties regarding the company's near-term delivery pipeline. Traders cited concerns that shipments of SK Hynix's next-generation HBM4 chips may have fallen short of elevated second-quarter expectations. Market participants are now shifting their focus to the company's upcoming earnings report, seeking concrete clarity on AI memory demand and production ramp-up trends.
Despite this near-term volatility, the company's fundamental positioning in the semiconductor supply chain remains intact. SK Hynix held the largest share of the global high-bandwidth memory market in the first quarter. The chipmaker remains a critical supplier of advanced HBM chips to Nvidia, directly powering the premium AI servers that drive the current global infrastructure buildout.
Analysts attributed Monday's decline entirely to profit-taking rather than a fundamental reassessment of the company's long-term trajectory. The massive capital raised on the Nasdaq provides a clear pathway to fund the aggressive expansion of AI chip production facilities required by hyperscale clients. For market professionals, the stock's current valuation hinges on whether SK Hynix can successfully execute this expansion and meet the industry's escalating technical demands for HBM4.
