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SK Square — Buying HBM Leader SK Hynix at a Discount

A holding-company lever on SK Hynix, the true global leader of the memory supercycle. About 98% of net asset value (NAV) is a single stock, SK Hynix, and a narrowing holdco discount makes that exposure even cheaper.

HHaelangdal·Founder AnalystJune 21, 202618 min readStock Analysis
Bottom Line

SK Square is a holding company whose NAV is 98% SK Hynix — the HBM share leader running a 71.5% operating margin — with a narrowing discount (66% toward 46%, Daishin's target 34%), a cash-recycling shareholder-return loop, and alternative demand created by fund ownership limits stacked on top, making it an investable name. But its multiplicative structure exposes it to both SK Hynix's share price and the NAV discount at once, so a memory cycle slowdown plus a re-widening discount amplifies the downside too.

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Reader's Brief — 30-second TL;DR

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Why Now

Since the November 2024 value-up update, SK Square rose 449%, outrunning SK Hynix (386%), and the NAV discount has narrowed to about 46%. Daishin Securities set a target discount of 34% and a price target of 1.87 million won. The next key checkpoint is SK Hynix's July 29 earnings, given it makes up 98% of NAV.

Winners ?? Losers

Winners: SK Square shareholders, fund money that cannot hold SK Hynix directly (alternative demand), and value-up investors targeting a narrowing holdco discount. Under pressure: holders who get amplified losses when the discount re-widens, investors who chased the memory cycle near its peak, and those indirectly exposed if Samsung's HBM4 push erodes SK Hynix's share.

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Reading depth

Company Overview — An Investment Holdco Born From SK Telecom's Split

SK is an holding company that newly listed via a spin-off from SK Telecom in November 2021. It manages stakes in semiconductor and New ICT investees and pursues new investments, and its largest asset is a roughly 20.5% stake in SK Hynix. Its main subsidiaries include SK Shieldus (security) and 11st (commerce), but the center of value is its core affiliate, SK Hynix.

Early after the spin-off it drew sneers as 'a special-purpose company that just manages SK Hynix dividends.' Roughly four years of portfolio reshaping changed the market's verdict. On the steady ammunition of SK Hynix equity-method , it invested in US and Japanese AI and semiconductor firms through TGC Square — a global investment base co-founded with SK Hynix — realizing up to a sevenfold value uplift. Small relative to total earnings, but it proved a precise investing radar.

In 2026, Vice Chairman Choi Jae-won joined SK Square, raising expectations for aggressive M&A in AI and semiconductors. It is cementing its standing as the strategic control tower that designs and manages SK Group's semiconductor and next-generation ICT ecosystem. Rather than hoarding cash, the company actively deploys dividends and buybacks to defend the .

SK Square overcame the early sneer of being 'a Hynix dividend manager' through portfolio reshaping and TGC Square investments. Its identity as SK Hynix's controlling shareholder and SK Group's semiconductor and ICT strategic control tower is the starting point for understanding the name.

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This report is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any financial instrument. Investment decisions should be made based on your own judgment and responsibility. The analysis and opinions contained herein are based on information available at the time of writing and are subject to change.

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