I hear Samsung Electronics and SK hynix's share buybacks are ending early to mid next month. What happens to the stock after that? Should I buy more now, or sell?

Samsung Electronics/SK hynix share buyback ends — who wins and who loses

The ongoing KRW 34.7 trillion share buyback program at Samsung Electronics and SK hynix is set to end as early as early-to-mid October. Progress stands at 74.7% (KRW 10.3 trillion) for Samsung Electronics and 58.8% (KRW 24.4 trillion) for SK hynix (Herald Corporation, 2026-09-21; NewDaily, 2026-09-20). Today's KOSPI recovery back above 7,000 was itself driven by Samsung Electronics alone gaining +4.98%, with foreign, institutional and other-corporate investors together net-buying over KRW 3 trillion (Global Economic, 2026-09-21) — and a significant portion of the "other corporations" net buying is the buyback itself.

Who structurally wins and who loses

• Losers: once the buyback ends, a guaranteed daily buyer disappears from the market. With KOSPI trading value already reduced, there's no clear new buyer to take its place, and that's the core of the concern (Segye Ilbo, EToday, 2026-09-20). Short-term traders who rode the gains formed during the buyback period are exposed to pullback risk during the October flow gap.
• Winners: long-term holders actually benefit. Share buybacks raise per-share value but keep the cash sitting in the company's coffers, whereas Samsung Electronics is scheduled to pay roughly KRW 30 trillion in cash dividends in Q3, and SK hynix has flagged an additional KRW 40 trillion in shareholder returns (Herald Corporation, 2026-09-21). Shifting from buybacks to dividends/cancellations is an improvement for long-term shareholders, since cash flows directly to them.

The variables that could fill the gap are already defined

The brokerage industry points to two candidates to fill the gap. First is foreign capital. Foreign investors alone net-bought KRW 1.0682 trillion of Samsung Electronics today, and whether that continues into October is the first signal to watch (Securities Plus, 2026-09-20). Second is the Q3 earnings season. With semiconductor exports confirmed at +259.4% year-over-year ($34.12 billion) for September 1-20, whether earnings back up that fundamental story is the key question.

So should you buy now or sell

The buyback ending shouldn't be read as a sell signal in itself. The shift toward dividends/cancellations isn't structurally negative. Still, near the early-October (Samsung Electronics)/mid-October (SK hynix) buyback end dates, mechanical buying disappearing could raise short-term volatility. The September 28 special dividend record date also falls right before the buyback ends, so ex-dividend selling and the flow gap could overlap around the same time, and that's worth being cautious about. Rather than taking new positions, it's safer to confirm whether foreign net buying continues for 1-2 weeks after the buyback ends before making a call.