Samsung is off to a rocky start this year.
Samsung Electronics' stock declined by nearly 5% in trading Thursday on the Korea Stock Exchange, shaving off $8.8 billion from the company's market cap, according to The Wall Street Journal. The drop comes amid growing concerns that Samsung's profit growth is slowing.
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The South Korean company is expected to report an operating profit of more than $9 billion for the fourth quarter, according to a survey of analysts. That's more than the overall revenues of many tech companies, but it represents a 9.2% increase from the same quarter a year earlier. By comparison, Samsung's profit in the third quarter was up 26% year-over-year.
Declining profit growth was a top concern for Samsung for much of 2013. Analysts are worried about Samsung's mounting marketing expenses and slowing demand for high-end smartphones, among other factors.
Image: Flickr, John Karakatsanis