Equities in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix advanced for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, even as a market force that had been supporting both semiconductor manufacturers showed signs of weakening. The two firms have directed more than 36 trillion won toward share buyback programmes, offsetting net selling activity and providing underlying support to the broader KOSPI index.
These buyback schemes may conclude several weeks ahead of schedule, raising questions about whether alternative investors can absorb the released shares once corporate purchasing activity subsides. By 21 September, Samsung had acquired 41.8 million of its own shares at a total outlay of 10.85 trillion won, accounting for approximately 78.44 percent of its overall buyback programme. SK Hynix had acquired 14.75 million shares valued at 25.51 trillion won, representing 61.28 percent of its repurchase programme.
Based on the current trajectory, Samsung may exhaust its remaining buyback allocation within five to six trading days, whereas SK Hynix appears on course to complete its own scheme in approximately 14 to 15 sessions. The initial purchase timeline for both programmes extended through to November.
The scale of these transactions is significant because institutional purchasers have been stepping in to address a void left by other market participants. During the 15-session trading period, corporate entities acquired a net 23.19 trillion won, offsetting combined net disposals of 12.81 trillion won by overseas investors and 16.28 trillion won by retail participants.
A Daishin Securities analyst said corporate purchasing activity had helped stabilise the market against a backdrop of external uncertainty. The analyst also noted that the available support might prove insufficient should overseas and institutional sell-offs accelerate. The KOSPI would, in that scenario, lose a buyer that operates on a fixed timetable rather than responding to market conditions.
Overseas investors recorded net purchases of approximately 140 billion won in KOSPI equities through Wednesday morning, marking a fourth consecutive session of inflows. Shares in Samsung gained 2.7 percent, while SK Hynix advanced around 1.6 percent.
According to a note by Shinyoung Securities analyst Lee Sang-yeon, as carried by a news outlet, robust overseas purchasing activity has historically followed a combination of reduced market turbulence, share supply from local investors, and the arrival of new market drivers, and that these elements are now aligning. The VKOSPI volatility index has retreated from its July high, and retail traders turned net sellers over the course of the month. Earnings reports from Micron and preliminary third-quarter figures from Samsung are near-term events that may bolster sentiment around the memory sector cycle.
As of 22 September, overseas investors held approximately 39.92 percent of total KOSPI market capitalisation. Elevated Treasury yields, fluctuating oil prices, or shifts in the won-dollar exchange rate each have the potential to stall the rebound.
On Wednesday, Yuanta Securities Korea analyst Baek Gil-hyun raised his price target on Samsung to 630,000 won from 530,000 won, maintaining a Buy recommendation on the stock. In a statement carried by a news outlet, Baek said supply limitations were likely to ease later than the market had anticipated, and that HBM manufacturing continues to draw on standard DRAM capacity at a time when AI inference is pushing up demand for greater volumes of memory. The firm anticipates that constrained market conditions will persist through 2028, with the extended cycle potentially increasing free cash flow available for future distributions to shareholders. Baek applied the same reasoning to SK Hynix, where robust appetite for HBM products and favourable pricing across standard memory lines underpin the company's financial projections.
