Samsung Electronics stock posts worst day in three weeks as memory chip sector slides

Samsung Electronics shares fell up to 10% on July 7 and over 13% on July 28, marking the stock's worst day in three weeks, as the broader memory chip sector slid on investor doubts about AI spending and rising Chinese competition. Despite Samsung's operating profit surging roughly 1,800% year-over-year to between $59B and $62B in Q2 2026, shares of Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron have all fallen more than 20% from recent highs, putting the subsector in bear market territory. Analysts attribute the selloff to profit-taking after a 150%-200% year-to-date rally, concerns about CXMT's entry into the DRAM market, and questions about hyperscaler capital expenditure sustainability.

Via news.samsungsemiconductor.com Samsung Electronics stock posts worst day in three weeks as memory chip sector slides Record profits couldn't save Samsung from a broader selloff driven by AI spending doubts and rising Chinese competition Samsung Electronics shares took a beating, dragging the broader memory chip sector down with it. Shares fell up to 10% on July 7 and over 13% on July 28, with peers also posting notable losses as investors reassessed the AI-fueled rally that had powered these names to extraordinary heights earlier in the year. The selloff is striking given Samsung’s recent financial performance. The company’s operating profit surged roughly 1,800% year-over-year for the second quarter of 2026, landing somewhere in the range of $59B to $62B. A sector-wide reckoning Samsung wasn’t alone in the downturn. Memory stocks including SK Hynix and Micron have all fallen more than 20% from their recent highs, putting the entire subsector firmly in bear market territory by early July 2026. Samsung shares alone had climbed roughly 150% to 200% year-to-date by July, powered by insatiable demand for AI-related memory products. Capacity was reportedly sold out through 2027. Analysts pointed to results that were only modestly ahead of already elevated estimates, a dynamic that tends to trigger profit-taking after extended rallies. The ripple effects were immediate and severe for South Korea’s benchmark index. Samsung alone frequently accounts for over 25% of the KOSPI index, and together with SK Hynix, the two companies represent a dominant share of the gauge. On the worst-affected days in July, the KOSPI plummeted by as much as 11.5%. The twin threats: China and capex fatigue Two specific concerns have been gnawing at investor confidence in the memory space. The first is competitive. CXMT, a Chinese DRAM manufacturer, has been making moves into a market long dominated by the Samsung-SK Hynix-Micron oligopoly. The second concern involves major hyperscalers — the cloud giants whose spending has been the oxygen supply for the entire AI hardware ecosystem — facing growing scrutiny over whether their capital expenditure levels are sustainable. The question is whether the revenue those investments generate will justify the outlays. Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy https://cryptobriefing.com/editorial-policy/ .