Samsung Electronics reported Q2 2024 operating profit of KRW 10.44 trillion, up from KRW 0.67 trillion a year earlier. The final result exceeded the KRW 8.8 trillion analyst consensus reported before the company issued guidance, and was close to Samsung’s own July 5 guidance of approximately KRW 10.4 trillion. AI-related demand for memory products helped drive the rebound, alongside higher memory prices and robust OLED panel sales.
How much did Samsung make in Q2 2024?
Samsung’s final Q2 results, released July 31, 2024, showed consolidated revenue of KRW 74.07 trillion and operating profit of KRW 10.44 trillion. The semiconductor-focused Device Solutions (DS) Division reported revenue of KRW 28.56 trillion and operating profit of KRW 6.45 trillion. These are reported results, not estimates. Samsung’s Q2 2024 results release provides the company figures.
For comparison, Samsung’s July 5 guidance table put Q2 2023 sales at KRW 60.01 trillion and operating profit at KRW 0.67 trillion. The low prior-year profit reflected the semiconductor downturn. Comparing the reported Q2 2024 figure with that base, operating profit rose by more than 15 times year over year, as Reuters described it in its July 31 results report.
Was the final profit higher than the estimate?
There were three different figures, issued at different points in the run-up to the results. The KRW 8.8 trillion figure was an analyst consensus, not Samsung’s forecast. Samsung’s later guidance was higher; its actual result was slightly above that guidance.
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| Figure | Operating profit | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| Analyst consensus | KRW 8.8 trillion | Average LSEG SmartEstimate from 27 analysts, reported by Reuters on July 4, 2024. It was a forecast, not company guidance. Reuters’ pre-guidance report. |
| Samsung guidance | Approximately KRW 10.4 trillion | Guidance median announced July 5, 2024; Samsung also guided to KRW 74 trillion in sales. The company gave medians rather than ranges under Korean disclosure rules. Samsung’s guidance announcement. |
| Samsung actual | KRW 10.44 trillion | Reported July 31, 2024, with consolidated revenue of KRW 74.07 trillion. Samsung’s results release. |
So, measured against the analyst consensus, Samsung beat the estimate. The final operating profit was also marginally above the company’s approximately KRW 10.4 trillion guidance, while revenue came in at KRW 74.07 trillion versus guidance of KRW 74 trillion.
How did AI affect Samsung’s earnings?
AI investment increased demand for memory used in data centers and servers. Samsung said cloud-service providers’ and businesses’ continued AI investment supported demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM), conventional DRAM and server solid-state drives (SSDs). Its Q2 2024 earnings presentation said hyperscaler investment drove demand not only for HBM but also conventional DRAM and SSDs.
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Samsung linked improved memory earnings to sales growth in HBM, DDR5 and other higher-value AI products, as well as overall memory-price improvements. This matters because the earnings rebound was not simply a story of selling a single AI component: stronger demand extended to several kinds of memory, while pricing across the memory market also improved.
Reuters reported that TrendForce estimated Q2 DRAM prices rose about 13–18% quarter over quarter and NAND flash prices about 15–20%. Those are TrendForce estimates cited by Reuters, not Samsung’s figures or a price forecast for later periods. Reuters’ July 4 report gives that context.
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Was AI the only reason profit rose?
No. AI-linked memory demand was a major driver, but Samsung also pointed to favorable memory-market conditions and higher average selling prices. It said robust OLED panel sales contributed to consolidated results. The final release does not support attributing the entire company-wide profit increase to AI alone.
The DS Division’s KRW 6.45 trillion operating profit shows the importance of semiconductors to the quarter, but it is a divisional result rather than the whole-company figure. Samsung’s consolidated KRW 10.44 trillion also includes the performance of its other businesses.
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What did Samsung expect for the second half of 2024?
At the time, Samsung expected AI servers to account for a larger share of the memory market as cloud providers and enterprises expanded investment. It also warned that allocating production capacity to HBM, server DRAM and server SSDs could constrain conventional memory supply for PCs and mobile devices. This was the company’s second-half 2024 outlook, not a current forecast. Its guidance also cautioned that actual results could differ materially because of factors including economic conditions, financial markets, currency rates, competition and regulation. See the outlook reported by Reuters.
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