SK Hynix plans to return approximately 100 trillion won to shareholders in 2026, including at least 30 trillion won in cash dividends and at least 60 trillion won in share buybacks and cancellations. The company also pledged that over 50% of its cumulative free cash flow (FCF) from 2025 to 2027 will be used for shareholder returns. Investor m0xt, based on forecasts from nine securities firms, estimates SK Hynix's free cash flow in 2027 to be between 242 trillion and 357 trillion won. If we estimate based on the cumulative free cash flow return ratio and the approximately 30 trillion won in annual dividends, the remaining buyback funds would be in the range of less than 930 trillion won, approximately 93 trillion to 151 trillion won, with a median of approximately 117 trillion won, equivalent to 10.8% of the current market capitalization, or approximately US$88 billion. If similar returns continue until 2028, the author estimates the median buyback scale could reach 15.1% of the current market capitalization.
