Samsung Electronics reported preliminary operating profit of 89.4 trillion won for the second quarter, driven by robust demand for AI-related memory chips, even as the stock declined nearly 7% in Seoul trading. The company recorded revenue of 171 trillion won for the April-to-June period, representing a significant recovery from 74.57 trillion won in the same quarter a year earlier. The performance underscores the strength of the semiconductor sector, though shares have fallen sharply over the past five days despite being up significantly over the past year.

Financial Performance

The preliminary operating profit of 89.4 trillion won compares with 57.2 trillion won in the first quarter and 4.68 trillion won in the year-ago period. Revenue rose to 171 trillion won from 133.87 trillion won in the preceding quarter and 74.57 trillion won a year earlier. These figures mark one of the company's strongest quarterly showings and a sharp turnaround from last year's performance.

Employee Compensation Impact

The preliminary earnings account for one-time expenses related to employee bonus provisions following recent labor negotiations. Samsung reached an agreement with its labor union to remove the previous bonus cap of 1,000% of base salary. Under the new terms, the company will allocate 10.5% of its operating profit toward employee bonuses, resolving a dispute that involved weeks of union protests.

Upcoming Earnings Release

The current announcement represents preliminary earnings guidance, limited to topline revenue and operating profit. Samsung is scheduled to release its full second-quarter earnings report on July 30. The detailed report will provide a breakdown of results across its business divisions, including semiconductors, mobile, and consumer electronics. At the time of writing, Samsung traded at 291,500 KRW on the South Korean exchange.

Samsung Electronics is set to report quarterly financial results this week, an event that could further boost shares of the semiconductor company that are already up 147.5% year-to-date in 2026. Rising demand for semiconductors has helped boost the valuation of Samsung and the wealth of its largest shareholders. The company’s chairman has quietly doubled his net worth in 2026.

Samsung Chairman Jay Y. Lee owns around 2% of Samsung Electronics and his wealth has soared to $33.4 billion in 2026, ranking 68th on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Lee’s wealth is up $16.1 billion and has more than doubled this year with Samsung’s historic stock price rise. The Samsung Chairman is now the richest Korean on the Bloomberg list and has posted the 14th largest wealth gain in 2026 by dollars.

Samsung Chairman Doubles Net Worth

Along with ownership of 2% of Samsung Electronics, Lee also owns 21% of Samsung C&T, a holding company of Samsung Group. The billionaire also owns an estimated 10% of Samsung Life Insurance, 9% of Samsung SDS and 2% of Samsung E&A.

For anyone familiar with the Samsung and Lee family saga, his net worth today is all the more impressive. Lee became involved with Samsung in 1991 and later led the company in 2014 after his father suffered a heart attack. In 2017, Lee was convicted of bribery. The sentence was later reduced to two and a half years in January 2021. Lee was later pardoned in August 2022 by the South Korean president.

AI Demand Drives Valuation

As a key supplier to companies like NVIDIA Corporation, Alphabet and Apple Inc., Samsung has become one of the largest companies in the world. The expected earnings surge reflects a prolonged shortage in the global memory market, with demand for AI infrastructure continuing to outpace supply. Analysts believe the market will remain undersupplied through at least next year.