SK Hynix Receives Wall Street Buy Calls, Valuation Poised to Match Micron

Barron's reported that SK Hynix (SKHY-US) stock is gaining strong favor among Wall Street analysts.

The South Korean memory chip giant's ADR saw multiple brokerages issue their first research reports on Tuesday (April 4), most with optimistic outlooks. SK Hynix ADR closed up 8% at $154.38.

Sebastien Naji, analyst at William Blair, described SK Hynix as the 'memory leader of the AI era' in his report, noting that its U.S. listing could help narrow the valuation gap with rival Micron (MU-US).

Naji initiated coverage with an 'Outperform' rating and set a $260 price target, representing approximately 68% upside from Tuesday’s closing price.

Hours before Naji’s report, SK Hynix and memory manufacturer SanDisk (SNDK-US) jointly announced a high-bandwidth flash memory technology roadmap.

Naji wrote, 'AI memory prices remaining high, coupled with slow expansion of new supply, are expected to continue supporting the company’s profitability.'

Brian Chin, analyst at Stifel Research, also initiated coverage on SK Hynix with a 'Buy' rating and a $240 price target.

He stated, 'We believe SK Hynix has demonstrated clear improvements in execution within the memory market, where demand continues to far exceed supply, yet its value remains underappreciated by the market.'

According to FactSet, several other firms—including Needham, Wedbush, Cantor Fitzgerald, RBC Capital Markets, and Rosenblatt—have also issued 'Buy' ratings on SK Hynix. The average price target among these analysts is $227.84, about 48% above Monday’s closing price.

This year, as AI infrastructure continues to expand, demand for memory chips has surged while supply remains tight, driving significant gains in the stocks of SK Hynix, Micron, and rival Samsung Electronics.

However, over the past month, the market has begun questioning how long the AI investment boom can last, causing related stocks to enter a consolidation phase.

As of Tuesday, SK Hynix ADR’s fiscal 2026 estimated P/E ratio was around 6.1x, compared to Micron’s 11.3x. Naji expects SK Hynix’s U.S. listing to help narrow this valuation gap, as a U.S. listing would enhance the company’s long-term visibility and strengthen its ties to AI and data center end markets.