Samsung Could See Nearly 8x Profit Jump in Q1 2026

Samsung may be heading for record-breaking earnings in the coming quarters. The company could report a nearly eightfold increase in operating profit for the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period last year. This is mainly because of the massive demand for memory chips and strategic decisions in its MX business.

Massive memory demand could play a key role in record-breaking profits

According to estimates by Meritz Securities (via Chosun), Samsung’s operating profit for Q1 2026 could hit 53.39 trillion won. This is a huge jump from 6.7 trillion won recorded in the same period last year. In Q4 2025, the company posted 20.1 trillion won in profit, showing a solid sequential increase (more than 2.5x) in the latest forecast.

“The unexpectedness of this year’s performance is highly likely to be confirmed not only by the operating leverage effect of memory but also by an earnings surprise from MX,” said Researcher Kim. “It is expected to record strong performance as various cost-cutting efforts amidst the recent trend of a weak won are combined with partial price increases for flagship models”.

Unsurprisingly, Samsung’s memory division could be the biggest contributor to this growth. The operating profit from this business alone could reach around 50.3 trillion won. If it pans out, this will be a new all-time high. Stronger pricing in key products such as DRAM and NAND could play a key role in the profit boost.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s MX division could also deliver solid results. This business segment could see an operating profit of around 4 trillion won. This is backed by shipments of about 59.5 million smartphones. Improved cost efficiency and pricing strategies for flagship models have also helped to solidify margins.

Meritz Securities also estimated that Samsung’s operating profit could rise further in the coming quarters. The company could post around 73.4 trillion won in Q2 2026 and 90.3 trillion won in Q3 2026. As for the full year, operating profit could hit about 322 trillion won. The company could see around 464 trillion won in 2027. We’ll let you know once the official figures for the first quarter are released.