NEW YORK, July 11, 2026, 11:09 EDT
SK hynix Inc. (NASDAQ:SKHYV; KRX:000660) wrapped up its U.S. debut at $168.01, up 12.8% from the $149 offer price. What stands out for Monday is that’s a 15.5% premium to what the chipmaker’s Seoul shares and Friday’s FX rate would suggest.
An American Depositary Share (ADS) is a U.S.-listed security tied to a foreign equity. Based on Friday’s close, 2.18 million won in Korea split by 10 and changed at 1,499.15 won to the dollar lands at $145.42 per ADS. Nasdaq finished $22.59 above that. Note, the sessions do not line up, so this isn’t a live arb window.
The gap kept growing this week. Seoul common shares dropped 10.1%, sliding from 2.425 million won on July 3 to 2.18 million won on Friday. The company sold 177.9 million ADSs, with demand topping supply by more than seven times, raising about $26.5 billion. U.S. shares started at $170, went as high as $177, and ended the session at $168.01.
| Friday cross-market check | Nasdaq ADS | Seoul common/ADS equivalent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Closing price | $168.01 | 2.18 million won / $145.42 | U.S. premium at 15.5% |
| Turnover | Roughly 106 million ADSs traded | 4.83 million common, or 48.3 million ADSs | U.S. volume 2.2x |
| Reference move | 12.8% over offer price | 10.1% under July 3 close | Split on price |
The volume wasn’t just an opening-day spike. About 106 million ADSs traded, making up around 60% of the whole offer and matching 10.6 million common shares—more than double Seoul’s Friday volume. By the close, the offered ADSs showed $3.38 billion in total paper profits. JJ Kinahan, head of retail expansion and alternative investment products at Cboe Global Markets (BATS:CBOE), called the early volume “a huge number.” Options trading is set to start Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal
Monday is set to test market plumbing as Nasdaq ends when-issued trading. The stock will switch to NASDAQ:SKHY with regular-way trading set to begin. Trades from Friday’s when-issued session are due for settlement on Tuesday, July 14.
The shift might not close the gap right away. Arbitrage traders tend to buy the cheaper share class and sell the more expensive one, then switch between them. Still, the SK Hynix prospectus says the depositary or custodian can sometimes reject common share deposits. Investors taking out the Korean shares may not be able to turn them into ADS again. That could hold back supply in New York.
Conditions stay tough for the business. CEO Kwak Noh-jung told Reuters that he sees 2027 as “the worst year in the industry’s history from the supply perspective” and warned that demand from customers could top available capacity past 2030. SK Hynix holds the top spot in high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, chips, which power Nvidia Corp.’s NASDAQ:NVDA AI accelerators. Reuters
The premium already prices in much of the valuation upside that the Nasdaq listing was supposed to bring. On the day shares were priced, SK Hynix traded at 5.5 times expected earnings for the next year. Micron Technology Inc. NASDAQ:MU traded at 6.66 times. If you just add the U.S. premium seen on Friday, the multiple for SK Hynix ADS comes out to about 6.35 times. “SK Hynix leads on share and Nvidia proximity,” said Daniel Newman, chief executive at Futurum Group. Reuters
| 12-month forward P/E snapshot | Multiple |
|---|---|
| SK Hynix, base Seoul quote | 5.50 times |
| SK Hynix ADS, factoring in Friday’s premium | 6.35 times |
| Micron Technology | 6.66 times |
The adjusted ADS figure here uses a cross-market formula. It’s not an analyst target, and its price and earnings numbers are not synced up.
The spread is a two-way street. If Seoul opens weaker, the dollar gains, or more ADSs hit the market, the U.S. listing could drop. Pullback in AI infrastructure spending would hit both securities. SK Hynix shares in Korea are down about 25% from their peak two weeks ago. “Oversupply fears are inherent to the industry,” Matt Kennedy, senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, said. Reuters
Seoul opens first on Monday, giving traders a new parity level ahead of the Nasdaq open. Settlement is set for Tuesday, with options expected to start trading the same day. SK Hynix is expected to move dollars into Korea and swap some cash to won by around July 15. Brent Donnelly of Spectra Markets described it as “a dollar-selling, won-buying event.” If the won strengthens, Seoul’s implied ADS value goes up, even if the Korean share price holds steady. Reuters
