SK Hynix posted more than 37 trillion won in operating profit in the first quarter, and an analysis said the company’s average performance bonus paid early next year could exceed 600 million won per employee.
Yonhap Infomax said on the 23rd that a consensus of 17 securities firms that issued reports over the past month forecast SK Hynix’s 2026 revenue at 301.1965 trillion won and operating profit at 227.8154 trillion won.
Based on that outlook, the pool for the company’s profit-sharing bonus, known as PS, would total about 22.7 trillion won. A simple calculation suggests roughly 35,000 employees would receive an average of about 630 million won each before tax, though payouts vary by seniority.
SK Hynix runs a bonus system that sets aside 10% of operating profit and pays a portion of annual salary once a year. Early this year, it paid a record 2,964% PS bonus based on 2025 results.
Expectations are rising that next year’s payout could be more than four times larger. Separately, the company’s productivity incentive, or PI, paid when targets are met in the first and second halves, is also expected to reach a maximum level this year at 150% of base pay.
Industry officials said top-tier compensation could help SK Hynix secure semiconductor talent and may also ease the concentration of students seeking medical school.
SK Hynix said it recorded first-quarter revenue of 52.5763 trillion won. Revenue rose 198.1% from a year earlier and operating profit increased 405.5%. Operating margin was 72%, net profit was 40.3459 trillion won and net margin was 77%.
That marked a sharp improvement from the previous quarter’s revenue of 32.8267 trillion won and operating profit of 19.1696 trillion won.
The company said it plans to draw up an execution plan within the year to consider additional shareholder returns, including share buybacks and cancellations, based on an expanding net cash position, in addition to its existing dividend.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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