SK Hynix Sets July 10 Nasdaq Debut at $166/Share, Targeting $29.5B

Wall Street's biggest chip debut in years

SK Hynix, the South Korean memory giant that supplies advanced high-bandwidth memory to Nvidia, plans to begin trading on Nasdaq under the ticker SKHY on July 10, with American Depositary Shares priced at approximately $166 each.yahoo The offering covers 17.79 million ADSs — about 2.5% of the company's outstanding shares — targeting roughly $29.4 billion in total proceeds, which Reuters described as one of the largest U.S. listings in recent history.yahoo +1 BofA Securities, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and J.P. Morgan are serving as underwriters.yahoo

The company says proceeds will go toward general corporate purposes, with the bulk earmarked for two capital projects: approximately 45.5 trillion won to build new semiconductor fabrication facilities in South Korea, and a further 11.9 trillion won for Extreme Ultraviolet lithography scanners scheduled for delivery by December 2027.blockonomi The offering size was deliberately structured to keep SK Square, the parent holding company, above the 20% ownership minimum required by South Korean corporate law.yahoo

An AI-driven valuation surge sets the stage

SK Hynix controls roughly 60% of the global market for high-bandwidth memory — the specialized chip architecture that powers AI accelerators from Nvidia and other manufacturers.yahoo Shares on the Korea Exchange have surged more than 300% in 2026 and approximately 920% over the past 12 months, pushing the company's market capitalization above $1 trillion for the first time in late May.yahoo Wall Street forecasts adjusted earnings expanding from $42.14 per share in 2025 to $297 per share by 2030, implying a compound annual growth rate of 96.5%.yahoo

Despite the steep run-up, Peter Kim, global investment strategist at KB Financial Group, told CNBC that the valuation has grown cheaper in relative terms because earnings estimates have climbed faster than the stock.yahoo HSBC analysts projected that the Nasdaq debut could lift SK Hynix's price-to-book ratio from 2.8 to 3.4 — a roughly 20% valuation uplift — largely by closing the gap with U.S. rival Micron Technology.cnbc +1

A national semiconductor ambition frames the timing

The SEC filing arrived one day after South Korean President Lee Jae Myung unveiled an 800 trillion won ($518 billion) national semiconductor initiative in which Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix will each construct two new fabrication plants in the country's southwest.cnbc The plan aims to double South Korea's DRAM manufacturing capacity within five years, anchoring the government's conviction that AI-era memory demand is structural rather than cyclical.cnbc Both stocks dipped on the announcement — SK Hynix fell 1.6% and Samsung dropped 4.8% — as investors weighed the scale of the capital commitment against record recent gains.cnbc

The broader IPO market provides a favorable backdrop: companies globally raised $251 billion through June 26, putting 2026 on pace for a record year according to Bloomberg data.blockonomi Memory-focused funds have ridden the wave alongside the megadeals, with the Roundhill Memory ETF up 160% year-to-date and the iShares Semiconductor ETF up 96%.blockonomi SK Hynix's Nasdaq debut gives U.S. investors their first direct access to the sector's dominant HBM supplier.