Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU – Free Report) by 19.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,970,808 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 981,408 shares during the quarter. Micron Technology makes up about 0.5% of Amundi’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Amundi owned approximately 0.53% of Micron Technology worth $2,017,178,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Micron Technology during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,433,456,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Micron Technology by 411.9% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,627,022 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $606,873,000 after purchasing an additional 2,918,535 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Micron Technology by 1,340.6% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,820,986 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $805,148,000 after purchasing an additional 2,625,169 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Micron Technology by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 106,608,094 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $30,427,016,000 after purchasing an additional 1,954,644 shares during the period. Finally, Employees Provident Fund Board bought a new stake in Micron Technology during the fourth quarter valued at $519,639,000. Institutional investors own 80.84% of the company’s stock.
Insiders Place Their Bets In other Micron Technology news, CAO Scott R. Allen sold 879 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.00, for a total value of $879,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 34,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,958,000. This represents a 2.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lynn A. Dugle sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,150.43, for a total value of $1,495,559.00. Following the sale, the director owned 17,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,394,823.04. This trade represents a 6.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 204,179 shares of company stock worth $190,836,321. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.
Key Headlines Impacting Micron Technology Here are the key news stories impacting Micron Technology this week:
Positive Sentiment: Potential U.S. tariffs or restrictions on Chinese memory chips could strengthen Micron’s domestic competitive position, pricing power and margins by limiting lower-cost competition from ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) and Yangtze Memory Technologies. Chips & Clips: Memory Tariffs Rewire Tech Supply Chains Positive Sentiment: Micron’s latest results remain a fundamental support: quarterly revenue reached $41.46 billion, up 345.8% year over year, while earnings per share of $25.11 exceeded consensus by $3.72. Analysts and some commentary continue to view AI-driven demand, high-bandwidth memory and contracted customer agreements as evidence this cycle may be structurally stronger than prior memory booms. Micron: The Boom And Bust Memory Cycle Could Finally Be Dead Neutral Sentiment: CME Group launched nearly round-the-clock single-stock futures, including contracts linked to Micron. The move may improve access and liquidity but also allows investors to react more quickly to overnight semiconductor news. CME launches single stock futures enabling investors to trade SpaceX, Micron 23 hours a day Negative Sentiment: Investors are reducing exposure to the AI trade amid fears of an AI bubble, expensive data-center financing and concerns that semiconductor valuations and spending expectations have become excessive. Micron was among the weakest performers in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index as memory stocks extended their pullback. Chip Stocks Extend Pullback Amid AI Bubble Fears Negative Sentiment: CXMT’s blockbuster Shanghai IPO and reports of advances in China’s domestic semiconductor equipment heightened fears that Chinese manufacturers could rapidly expand DRAM production, narrow the technology gap and pressure Micron’s future pricing and market share. Why Micron Stock Just Dropped Again Negative Sentiment: Profit-taking is also significant after Micron’s extraordinary year-long rally. A chief accounting officer’s sale of 879 shares at approximately $1,000 per share added a minor insider-selling signal, though the transaction represented only about 2.45% of that executive’s holdings. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of analysts have weighed in on MU shares. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $1,300.00 target price on shares of Micron Technology in a report on Monday, June 22nd. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Micron Technology from $1,500.00 to $2,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $1,500.00 price target on shares of Micron Technology in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Micron Technology in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Micron Technology in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,268.93.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Micron Technology
Micron Technology Stock Performance MU opened at $820.53 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $926.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.58 and a beta of 2.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 3.42 and a quick ratio of 2.98. Micron Technology, Inc. has a 1-year low of $103.38 and a 1-year high of $1,255.00. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $973.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $632.05.
Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $25.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.39 by $3.72. The firm had revenue of $41.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.91 billion. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 71.13% and a net margin of 55.91%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 345.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.91 EPS. Micron Technology has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 30.000-32.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 72.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Micron Technology Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Investors of record on Monday, July 6th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 6th. Micron Technology’s payout ratio is presently 1.36%.
About Micron Technology (Free Report)
Micron Technology, Inc is a global semiconductor company that designs and manufactures memory and storage solutions. Its product portfolio includes dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), NAND flash memory, solid-state drives (SSDs), memory modules and embedded memory solutions for a wide range of computing and electronic devices. Micron supplies components used in data centers, enterprise and cloud infrastructure, client computing, mobile devices, automotive systems and industrial applications, and also markets consumer-facing products under the Crucial brand.
Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Boise, Idaho, Micron has grown into an international manufacturer with research, development and production facilities across multiple regions.
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Micron Technology These 3 Stocks Have Soared in 2026—Can They Keep Climbing? Hasbro’s Earnings Beat Shows Why This Is No Longer Just a Toy Story Rambus: Another AI Phoenix Ready to Rise From the Ashes of Correction Chips & Clips: Memory Tariffs Rewire Tech Supply Chains Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MU? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Micron Technology Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Micron Technology and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Micron's (MU -8.87%) stock has rallied nearly 190% this year. The artificial intelligence (AI) market's rapid expansion, which drove more data centers to upgrade their infrastructure to handle the latest AI applications, fueled those massive gains.
However, Micron's historical stock performance suggests investors shouldn't be surprised if it pulls back by more than 30% later this year. Let's see why it could be headed for a steep drawdown -- and if that decline would be a red flag or a buying opportunity.
Image source: Getty Images.
Is Micron's stock still cyclical? As one of the world's leading producers of DRAM and NAND memory chips, Micron's growth is usually tightly tethered to the memory market's boom-and-bust cycles. When demand outstrips supply, prices surge as Micron and its peers scramble to produce more chips. But that increased production often leads to supply gluts, and memory chip prices pull back again.
Micron went through two and a half of those cycles over the past decade. Slowing sales of smartphones and PCs caused memory chip prices to plummet in 2015 and 2016, but the rapid expansion of cloud data centers and new smartphones lifted the market in 2017 and 2018.
Today's Change
(
-8.87
%) $
-79.84
Current Price
$
820.37
In 2019, the trade war between the U.S. and China chilled the memory market again. Still, its growth accelerated in 2020 and 2021 as the pandemic sparked fresh demand for remote-work electronics (such as tablets and laptops) and cloud-based services.
In 2022 and 2023, inflation, rising interest rates, and a post-pandemic collapse in consumer electronics crushed the market again. But starting in 2024, the AI boom created an insatiable demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips and enterprise solid-state drives (SSDs) to feed AI accelerator clusters. Since HBM chips require triple the wafer capacity of a standard DRAM chip, their production choked the supply of traditional PC and server memory chips.
The bulls believe this AI-driven supercycle will last longer than Micron's previous growth cycles. From fiscal 2025 (which ended last September) to fiscal 2028, analysts expect its revenue to surge from $37.3 billion to $295.2 billion, while its net income soars from $8.5 billion to $176.8 billion. That's a jaw-dropping growth rate for a stock that trades at 11 times this year's earnings.
However, analysts tend to overestimate Micron's growth potential when the memory market is hot and underestimate it when it cools. Its stock also experiences massive peak-to-trough drawdowns (73% from 2014 to 2016, 55% in 2018, 43% in 2020, 51% in 2021, and 36% in 2024) whenever investors get too optimistic about its long-term growth potential. Therefore, history suggests that a decline of 30% or more could really happen at any time -- even if Micron is well-poised to profit from the AI market's soaring demand for more DRAM and NAND chips.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of MU either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
Micron chief executive Sanjay Mehrotra sold shares worth about $37.3 million on Friday as the memory-chip maker suffers its steepest monthly slide in years.
The transaction covered 40,000 shares and preceded Micron’s 8.9% fall on Tuesday to $820.53.
The stock is down more than 29% in July and 32% from its June peak, reflecting fears over Chinese competition, AI infrastructure financing and the durability of the memory boom.
Yet the disposal followed instructions established months before the semiconductor rout, making it weaker evidence of a sudden change in Mehrotra’s outlook.
The July 24 disposal was executed through a Rule 10b5-1 plan adopted on January 30.
Micron said the arrangement allowed the Mehrotra Family Trust to sell as many as 200,000 shares between May 1, 2026, and May 1, 2027.
Such plans establish trading instructions in advance and are intended to reduce concerns that corporate insiders are acting on undisclosed information.
They do not make a transaction irrelevant, but they distinguish a scheduled sale from a spontaneous decision during a market decline.
The latest transaction followed sizeable planned disposals in May and June.
Mehrotra sold stock worth about $21.5 million on May 1, roughly $36 million in late May and approximately $46.3 million in late June. Including Friday’s trade, gross proceeds have exceeded $140 million since early May.
That merits scrutiny after Micron’s extraordinary rally. However, “cashes out” should not be confused with a complete exit.
TipRanks reported that Mehrotra continues to hold an economic interest in the company, leaving his wealth tied to Micron’s performance.
The filing landed during a sector-wide retreat rather than an isolated Micron problem.
Investors are reassessing China’s progress in memory production and chipmaking equipment, the possibility of cheaper conventional DRAM supply and whether hyperscalers can sustain AI capital-expenditure programmes.
Mizuho managing director Daniel O’Regan wrote on July 24 that the question he was hearing most was why the semiconductor complex was lagging so badly.
He saw no single “smoking gun”, pointing instead to several explanations weighing on sentiment.
Micron has become unusually important to that debate.
Trivariate Research called it “the most important stock in the market” in a July 16 report, describing the shares as a proxy for the AI cycle and investors’ willingness to take risk.
That role magnifies the optics of an insider sale.
When traders treat Micron as a barometer for AI infrastructure, a large disposal by its chief executive can reinforce anxiety even when the transaction was planned.
The bearish interpretation centres on scale and timing.
Mehrotra has realised more than $140 million while investors debate whether memory prices, hyperscaler spending and the sector’s valuation have approached unsustainable levels.
Additional sales could deepen the impression that executives are monetising an exceptional rally.
The bullish counterargument is rooted in Micron’s changing business structure.
UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri has argued that longer customer agreements, committed volumes and partially fixed pricing could give the company better visibility and a smoother earnings profile than in previous memory cycles.
Arcuri said the market could eventually place a more “normal” multiple on Micron as evidence emerges that AI has structurally changed the memory industry.
Micron has also disclosed 16 multiyear strategic customer agreements intended to improve predictability.
Those fundamentals matter more than one filing.
Genuine warning signs would include weakening HBM orders, falling contract prices, cuts to hyperscaler spending or faster-than-expected Chinese capacity additions.
David Ellison urges investors to focus on individual companies and not focus on the indexes when markets "don't know what they're doing." He adds that "peak earnings" have investors skeptical numbers will get any better, pointing to Micron's (MU) continuing sell-off following its "fantastic" report as an example.
Micron Technology (MU -8.87%) stock fell 9% as of 2:40 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The S&P 500 was up 0.3% while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.1%.
Micron, the memory chipmaker, is caught up in a multi-day chip-sector sell-off. Two main factors are driving it: new worries that a Chinese competitor will push memory prices down, and a broader loss of confidence in AI spending.
Today's Change
(
-8.87
%) $
-79.84
Current Price
$
820.37
Chip stocks around the globe were hit A sell-off in Asia and Europe reached U.S. markets today, with memory and storage stocks taking the worst of it.
Chinese memory maker ChangXin Memory Technologies completed its initial public offering in Shanghai on Monday, renewing fears that Chinese firms will undercut Korean and U.S.-based chipmakers and weigh on earnings.
AI spending continues to grow It's not just memory, however, investors are losing patience with the spending habits of big tech hyperscalers like Alphabet, which raised its capex guidance once again when it reported earnings just days ago.
The market is growing wary of the investment in AI, given the scale of the spend and the uncertainty of seeing a return.
The Fed's decision looms
Image source: White House
There's another wrinkle weighing on stocks today: the Federal Reserve will announce its next rate decision tomorrow, and some think the Fed could surprise the market with a hike. Frank Flight of Citadel Securities said in a research note that "the market may once again be underestimating the extent of the hawkish shift at the Fed" and that a hike may be in store.
The bottom line While Micron has been blowing past earnings expectations and growing at a record pace, I think investors have gotten ahead of themselves. I would wait for the stock to come back to earth.
Johnny Rice has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet and Micron Technology. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Pity investors in the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares ETF (SOXL -14.52%) -- they just can't catch a break.
For three days running, this ETF has fallen 10% or more. (It's actually fallen for four straight days, but Thursday's decline was rather modest.) Counting today's 12.8% decline through 3:10 p.m., the semiconductor index has lost 31% of its value since Wednesday evening.
But why?
Image source: Getty Images.
China is coming China is one worry.
Booming semiconductor profits have depended heavily on low supply and high prices for artificial intelligence chips in general, and computer memory chips (DRAM and NAND) in particular -- both needed to equip data centers to answer AI questions. This scenario has inflated profit margins for semiconductor companies, including Micron (MU -8.87%), Nvidia (NVDA +0.42%), and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD -8.28%), which reported gross profit margins of 85%, 75%, and 55%, respectively, in their most recent quarters.
Problem is, China is coming after these fat margins. It's ramping production, selling cheap, and recently, begun IPOing companies to raise cash to increase production of cheap semiconductor chips. Apple's (AAPL +1.02%) recent request for permission to buy memory chips from CXMT suggests the demand is there, and customers won't balk at buying Chinese chips if the price is right -- and the supply is there.
Add a dash of market worry that AI companies may slow down spending to conserve cash, and this sets up a nasty scenario for investors.
What this means for the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares ETF Now here's why this is bad news for the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares ETF in particular: Micron, Nvidia, and AMD are the top 3 holdings of the SOXL. When these stocks go down (as two of them are today), the ETF drops even faster.
Every. Single. Time.
Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Apple, Micron Technology, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Index Dow Jones +1,03 % na 52748,3 b. S&P 500 +0,22 % na 7429,21 b. Nasdaq Composite -0,22 % na 24876,91 b.
Hlavní americké indexy uzavřely dnešní obchodování smíšeně, přičemž index DJI posílil o 1 %, i v návaznosti na pozitivní čtvrtletní výsledky společnosti Coca-Cola. Index S&P 500 se zotavil z dřívějších ztrát a uzavřel s nárůstem o 0,22 %. Klesající akcie výrobců čipů táhly dolů technologický index, který oslabil přibližně o 0,22 %.
Pokračoval propad výrobců čipů. Akcie společností Micron Technology a SK hynix, předních výrobců čipů a úložných zařízení kótovaných na amerických burzách, poklesly o více než 8 % v důsledku obav z rostoucí čínské konkurence a obav ze vzájemně projeného financování v odvětví výroby čipů. Zdá se, že trh jakoby ignoroval další propad hodnoty akcií výrobců čipů a tak hlavně zdravotní sektor a softwareové společnosti pomohly ke kladným hodnotám DJI a S&P.
Je také dobré zmínit, že Fed dnes zahajuje své dvoudenní zasedání o měnové politice a pro trh se jedná o jedno z nejtěžších rozhodnutí v oblasti měnové politiky za poslední roky. Makléři se spíše přiklánějí k tomu, že Fed na konci zasedání ve středu ponechá úrokové sazby beze změny, ale jejich názor není jednoznačný a na pořadu dne by mohlo být i zvýšení sazeb.
Index S&P 500 +0,22 % na 7429,21 b. Nejsilnější sektory S&P Změna Nejslabší sektory S&P Změna Zdravotní péče +2,4 % Energie -1,4 % Nezbytná spotřeba +2 % Informační technologie -1,2 % Základní materiály +1,7 % Průmysl -0,4 % Nejsilnější akcie S&P Změna Nejslabší akcie S&P Změna IQVIA Holdings (IQV) +14 % Sandisk Corp (SNDK) -14 % Incyte Corp (INCY) +9,3 % Corning (GLW) -12 % Sherwin-Williams (SHW) +8,3 % Coherent Corp (COHR) -10 % Workday (WDAY) +8,2 % Carrier Global Corp (CARR) -8,9 % Zebra Technologies Corp (ZBRA) +7,5 % Micron Technology (MU) -8,9 %
David Rojko-Kovačík
Fio banka, a.s.
Prohlášení
Micron (MU -8.96%) has fallen sharply as Michael Burry bet against the stock, but unprecedented contracts could make its earnings more durable than previous memory cycles. This video examines whether the sell-off created a compelling opportunity or exposed a familiar valuation trap.
*Stock prices used were the market prices of July 17, 2026. The video was published on July 25, 2026.
Rick Orford has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Micron Technology. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Rick Orford is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through their link, they will earn some extra money that supports their channel. Their opinions remain their own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.
Shares in major U.S. chip and memory companies, including Micron, Sandisk, and Intel, are sinking this morning in premarket trading after the stock prices of similar companies in Asia got hammered hard.
Investors analyzing the technology sector often seek clarity on how macroeconomic policies affect corporate valuations. By evaluating the mechanics of supply chain weaponization, market participants can identify which enterprises command pricing power and which face margin compression. Understanding the structural shift from globalized sourcing to protectionist politics reveals how potential tariffs on memory chips are actively reshaping the financial profiles of today's industry leaders.
The world economy is moving away from a time when technology supply chains were operated without borders. Today, geopolitical trade policy serves as a primary driver of fundamental business health. By looking closely at where a business sits within the physical economy, investors can spot structural shifts before they are fully priced into equity share prices.
Get Apple alerts:
Weaponizing the Silicon TradeThe Trump administration's upcoming decision on Chinese memory chip tariffs represents a defining macroeconomic pivot.
Upstream suppliers are positioned to gain additional pricing leverage if U.S. sourcing restrictions tighten, while downstream consumer electronic giants navigate severe component cost inflation to protect their balance sheets. For market participants, underwriting the United States tech ecosystem requires factoring in these new legislative realities. Policy outcomes are actively creating distinct winners and losers within the hardware space.
This is no longer a hypothetical risk. The political friction surrounding semiconductor sector components provides a real-time stress test for equity valuations. When trade policies act as a tollbooth on the physical supply chain, investors need to look at operating margins to see who is truly positioned to absorb the shock.
Micron Secures the High GroundMicron Technology Today
MU
Micron Technology
$819.19 -81.01 (-9.00%)
As of 02:54 PM Eastern
This is a fair market value price provided by Massive. Learn more.
52-Week Range$103.38▼
$1,255.00Dividend Yield0.07%
P/E Ratio18.55
Price Target$1,268.93
Look closely at the semiconductor landscape, specifically memory production.
Driven by AI data center demand and manufacturers’ shift toward high-bandwidth memory, supplies of conventional DRAM and NAND have tightened, pushing prices sharply higher across many product categories.
This supply-and-demand imbalance fundamentally alters the leverage of domestic manufacturers like Micron Technology NASDAQ: MU.
Shares of Micron advanced around 185% this year, though the stock recently pulled back to just below $900 from its all-time high of $1,255.
Trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33, the market is pricing in substantial earnings growth. The primary catalyst driving this valuation expansion is stronger pricing leverage amid tight memory supply.
If the Trump administration enforces strict bans on state-subsidized components from Chinese manufacturers ChangXin Memory Technologies and Yangtze Memory Technologies, Micron could secure a strong domestic moat.
Micron is heavily investing in this specific policy outcome. Management has mobilized aggressive lobbying efforts, pledging $250 billion in domestic manufacturing investments through 2035, including laying early foundations for a new New York campus.
A concurrent $250 million commitment to match federal funding for newborn savings accounts secures profound administrative goodwill. With gross margins already exceeding 80%, a finalized tariff policy could reduce Micron's low-cost international competition.
When revenue scales on a fixed manufacturing cost base and remains shielded from foreign price undercutting, the resulting capital could support earnings growth. Institutional confidence aligns seamlessly with this setup, evidenced by heavy out-of-the-money call option volume targeting the $1,300 to $1,500 strike range.
Micron Technology, Inc. (MU) Price Chart for Tuesday, July, 28, 2026
Apple Faces the Margin SiegeApple Today
$338.82 +1.91 (+0.57%)
As of 02:54 PM Eastern
This is a fair market value price provided by Massive. Learn more.
52-Week Range$201.50▼
$342.89Dividend Yield0.32%
P/E Ratio40.95
Price Target$327.40
While upstream suppliers benefit from domestic protectionism, downstream hardware manufacturers face a brutal zero-sum reality. Apple Inc. NASDAQ: AAPL finds itself heavily exposed to this component cost squeeze.
Hardware gross margins recently slipped to 38.7%, highlighting the immediate threat of upstream supply chain inflation. Recent data from multiple analysts projects that memory costs for premium iPhones could surge from $50 to $200.
Absorbing a $150 increase in the bill of materials across hundreds of millions of global device shipments translates to billions of dollars in compressed operating income.
To mitigate this, Apple executives are actively pitching the administration to permit the integration of Chinese memory chips specifically for devices sold internationally. This lobbying effort reflects a broader industry trend, with major original equipment manufacturers like Dell NYSE: DELL and HP NYSE: HPE also exploring components from ChangXin Memory Technologies to offset skyrocketing memory costs.
The core friction point involves national security. Both ChangXin Memory Technologies and Yangtze Memory Technologies remain on the Pentagon's 1260H blacklist of military-linked entities. Using those suppliers could create national security, procurement, and compliance concerns.
Trading at a trailing price-to-earnings multiple of 40.74 with a market capitalization of $4.95 trillion, Apple's premium valuation offers a remarkably narrow margin of safety. Investors paying 40 times earnings expect flawless execution. Any unexpected earnings miss driven by component margin compression could trigger a sharp valuation reset.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) Price Chart for Tuesday, July, 28, 2026
Underwriting the New World OrderEvaluating technology equities now requires looking beyond traditional earnings reports and product cycles. Supply chain visibility and political capital operate as critical components of fundamental health. Upstream manufacturers are weaponizing domestic investments to secure pricing power, while downstream consumer giants leverage massive user bases to fight for globalized cost efficiencies.
Investors might consider adding Micron to their watchlists if they seek exposure to structural margin expansion driven by domestic protectionism and artificial intelligence constraints. Cautious market participants seeking stability amid trade volatility might favor Apple, given its resilient Services ecosystem to absorb transient hardware shocks. Balancing these two distinct dynamics enables portfolios to navigate the evolving risks of a politicized supply chain with confidence.
Should You Invest $1,000 in Apple Right Now?Before you consider Apple, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Apple wasn't on the list.
While Apple currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
MarketBeat just released its list of the 7 hottest IPOs expected to hit Wall Street in 2026. See which companies are preparing to go public and why investors are watching closely.
The AI memory trade has flipped from Wall Street’s hottest bet to one of its biggest wealth destroyers.
Since peaking in late June, the world’s largest memory and storage companies have erased more than $2 trillion in combined market capitalization
Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (OTC:SSNLF) has lost about $546 billion SK Hynix Inc. (NASDAQ:SKHY) over $501 billion Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) roughly $440 billion The rout accelerated this week after China’s memory giant ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) went public in Shanghai, prompting investors to shift their focus from booming AI demand to the risk that surging Chinese capacity could spark a new price war across the memory industry, despite hyperscalers continuing to ramp up AI spending.
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
The artificial intelligence (AI) revolution has ignited an unprecedented surge in demand for advanced memory technologies. Training and running large language models (LLMs) requires enormous amounts of high bandwidth memory (HBM) to feed data to GPUs at extremely low latency, alongside DRAM for system performance and NAND flash for storing data sets.
The expansion of hyperscale data centers has created a memory bottleneck as it takes producers years to bring new capacity online. This mismatch is fueling a supercycle in HBM, DRAM, and NAND pricing and volumes.
Two pure-play memory and storage beneficiaries stand out: Micron Technology (MU -8.96%) and Sandisk (SNDK -15.15%). So far this year, Micron shares have surged 223% while Sandisk stock has rocketed by 505%, reflecting the market's recognition of their central roles in the AI chip stack.
Image source: The Motley Fool.
Analyzing the AI memory boom's explosive growth Over the last year, both Micron and Sandisk have delivered extraordinary financial results -- underscoring how indispensable memory has become for AI development.
MU Revenue (TTM) data by YCharts
Micron supplies HBM stacks that sit directly alongside AI accelerators from Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. Essentially, Micron's business is directly benefiting from the insatiable demand for new GPU architectures. Meanwhile, Sandisk's enterprise solid-state drives (SSDs) and high-density NAND provide the storage layer that every AI chip cluster requires.
Taken together, Micron and Sandisk form foundation layers of the broader AI hardware stack, turning what was once a commodity business into a strategic enabler of next-generation models.
Isn't the memory market cyclical? Indeed, the memory market has long been notoriously cyclical -- swinging between oversupply gluts and fleeting shortages. I think the AI-driven upswing breaks this pattern, making demand secular rather than speculative. The reason is simple: Every new data center rack needs fixed quantities of HBM, DRAM, and NAND, and hyperscalers can't easily substitute or delay procurement of this hardware.
Both Micron and Sandisk are responding by locking in multi-year supply agreements with their customers. These contracts cover meaningful portions of future production with built-in volume guarantees and prepayment structures.
The arrangements provide both companies with revenue visibility and stable pricing, while reducing the risk of a sudden inventory correction. By shifting their business models from spot-market volatility to contracted demand, Micron and Sandisk are evolving a historically boom-and-bust memory industry into one with more durable earnings power.
Today's Change
(
-8.96
%) $
-80.61
Current Price
$
819.59
Micron and Sandisk trade at reasonable valuations While both Micron and Sandisk have witnessed meaningful valuation expansion over 2026, both stocks remain attractive based on forward price-to-earnings (P/E) multiples. For fiscal 2027, consensus earnings estimates among Wall Street analysts are $153.74 and $212.95 for Micron and Sandisk, respectively. Given their current stock prices, this equates to a forward P/E of roughly 6 and 5.6, respectively, for Micron and Sandisk.
NVDA PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts
As the chart above illustrates, Micron and Sandisk's forward P/E ratios are both well below the peaks seen in other category-leading AI chip stocks during earlier cycles of the AI revolution. Their reasonable valuation profile, combined with continued earnings momentum, creates a compelling case for owning both stocks.
In my eyes, holding Micron and Sandisk provides diversified exposure across HBM, DRAM, and NAND, spreading risk while capturing the full breadth of the memory chapter of the AI infrastructure era. All told, pairing Micron and Sandisk adds a critical complementary layer that pure compute names cannot replicate.
“What’s priced in is the last twelve months,” Rhind told Benzinga in an exclusive email interview. “What’s hard to price is a shortage that may not clear until 2028.”
Unlike traditional memory, however, HBM capacity cannot be expanded overnight. Production requires advanced manufacturing, packaging, and years of investment, creating supply constraints that Rhind believes could persist well beyond current market expectations.
“Capacity takes years to build, and the AI buildout isn’t slowing,” he said.
For investors, the key takeaway is that while memory stocks have already rallied sharply, the industry’s supply-demand imbalance may prove more durable than the market currently anticipates if AI infrastructure spending continues at its current pace.
Image via Shutterstock
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
Micron Technology (MU) and its memory peers are bearing the brunt of a fierce market selloff on Tuesday, which has been the case this month. Micron declined 8% while SanDisk plunged 15% in the session.
Pity investors in Sandisk (SNDK -14.05%) stock -- they just can't seem to catch a break.
For three days running, Sandisk stock has fallen 10% or more. Including this morning's 12.5% crash through 9:50 a.m., the semiconductor stock has lost 31% of its value since Thursday evening. But why?
Image source: Getty Images.
Big trouble in China The biggest worry for Sandisk investors, I believe, is the risk that Chinese competition on NAND computer memory chips could ruin the company's high gross profit margins, which topped 78% in the most recent quarter. Yesterday, Chinese chipmaker CXMT (short for "ChangXin Memory Technologies") IPO'ed in Shanghai at a $487 billion market capitalization, raising more than $8 billion in new cash that the company can use to build new factories, expand DRAM production, and help to end the global memory deficit that has helped to inflate profits for companies like Micron (MU -8.41%) and Sandisk.
Apple (AAPL +0.77%) has already expressed interest in buying memory chips from CXMT. And while CXMT's focus on DRAM chips doesn't pose a direct threat to Sandisk's NAND business currently, there's no guarantee CXMT won't expand into NAND -- or that other Chinese companies won't attempt similar IPOs to bolster their own efforts to steal Sandisk's market share, and compete with it on price.
CXMT's IPO could simply be a portent of risks to come.
Today's Change
(
-14.05
%) $
-179.60
Current Price
$
1,098.64
The bigger picture for Sandisk At the same time, Wolfe Research warns today on StreetInsider that investors are broadly concerned about the health of the artificial intelligence economy: whether, even if Sandisk manages to keep its prices high, AI companies will be able to keep paying that high price -- or will be forced to cut spending.
If AI infrastructure budgets start to get cut, you can bet Sandisk's share price will get cut as well.
Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple and Micron Technology. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of GOOGL, ORCL, MSFT, AMZN, NVDA either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Disclaimer: I am not an investment advisor or professional. This article is my own personal opinion and is not meant to be a recommendation of the purchase or sale of stock. The investments and strategies discussed within this article are solely my personal opinions and commentary on the subject. This article has been written for research and educational purposes only. Anything written in this article does not take into account the reader’s particular investment objectives, financial situation, needs, or personal circumstances and is not intended to be specific to you. Investors should conduct their own research before investing to see if the companies discussed in this article fit into their portfolio parameters. Just because something may be an enticing investment for myself or someone else, it may not be the correct investment for you.
Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
Six weeks. Four separate chip-stock selloffs. A combined $1 trillion wiped off Korea’s top four chipmakers. If you’re wondering whether the AI trade has hit a wall, you are not alone.
SNDK stock is down 14%. See the chart and price action here. The Pattern Is Getting Hard to IgnoreThis isn’t a one-off panic. The Kospi has now suffered repeated double-digit single-session drawdowns since late June — 10% on June 23, another 9% on July 13, and 10.8% overnight — each one tripping circuit breakers and each one centered on the same two stocks: Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
Korea-listed SK Hynix is now down 47% from its June peak; Samsung is off 38%, per Trade Nation’s David Morrison. That’s not a dip — that’s a trend.
Leverage, Not Fundamentals, Is Doing the Damage — So FarThe bull case hinges on one distinction: analysts keep framing this as a “positioning unwind,” not a demand collapse.
DRAM and NAND inventories remain near historic lows, and Korea Investment & Securities’ downgrade of SK Hynix’s Q2 estimate was still framed around margin timing, not a broken AI story.
Tech analyst Dan Ives called the June rout a “buying opportunity,” even as he warned of near-term “selling pressure and anxiety."
Barron’s has gone further, arguing the Kospi’s slide into a technical bear market still leaves room to “recover and trade higher over the next 18 months.”
But the Cracks Are MultiplyingThe Real TestWhether that’s contagion or a healthy repricing of an overheated trade is the multi-billion-dollar question heading into this week’s Big Tech earnings and AI capex commentary.
Photo: Shutterstock
This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
Index Dow Jones +0,86 % na 52659,78 b., S&P 500 -0,28 % na 7392,46 b., Nasdaq Composite -1,33 % na 24600,91 b.
Americké akcie zahájily úterní seanci smíšeně. Index Dow Jones posiluje, zatímco širší index S&P 500 mírně oslabuje a technologický Nasdaq Composite klesá výrazněji pod tlakem polovodičových titulů. Akcie výrobce paměťových čipů Micron odepisují přibližně 12 %, zatímco akcie společností Sandisk a Western Digital klesají o 17 %, respektive 15 %. Negativní sentiment navazuje na pondělní výprodej technologických titulů a prohloubil jej také 11% propad jihokorejského indexu KOSPI.
Investoři také vyhodnocují další várku kvartálních výsledků.
Jedním z reportujících je americká logistická společnost UPS. Ta zveřejnila výsledky hospodaření za druhé čtvrtletí roku 2026. Tržby i očištěný zisk na akcii překonaly odhady analytiků a společnost zvýšila celoroční výhled tržeb. UPS zároveň oznámila, že úspěšně dokončila postupné omezování objemů od Amazonu. Akcie UPS -5,6 %.
Dále také reportovala své výsledky za druhé čtvrtletí roku 2026 americká platební společnost PayPal. Očištěný zisk na akcii překonal průměrný odhad analytiků, stejně jako výnosy a objem zpracovaných plateb. Očištěný provozní zisk i marže však meziročně klesly. Akcie PayPal +4,5 %.
Americká nápojářská společnost Coca-Cola rovněž reportovala výsledky hospodaření za druhý kvartál roku 2026. Porovnatelný zisk na akcii i očištěné organické tržby překonaly očekávání analytiků. Společnost zaznamenala také silnější než očekávaný růst objemu prodejů a zvýšila celoroční výhled organických tržeb i porovnatelného zisku na akcii. Akcie Coca-Cola +6,8 %.
Také americký výrobce letadel Boeing reportoval výsledky hospodaření za druhý kvartál roku 2026. Tržby i provozní hotovostní tok překonaly očekávání analytiků. Výnosy segmentů Komerční letadla a Obrana, vesmír a bezpečnost rostly meziročně a překonaly konsensus. Jádrová ztráta na akcii byla naopak vyšší, než analytici očekávali. Akcie Boeing +3,8 %.
Index S&P 500 -0,28 % na 7392,46 b. Nejsilnější sektory S&P Změna Nejslabší sektory S&P Změna Nezbytná spotřeba +3,9 % Informační technologie -2,7 % Zdravotní péče +2,9 % Průmysl -0,5 % Základní materiály +2,4 % Zbytná spotřeba +0,4 % Nejsilnější akcie S&P Změna Nejslabší akcie S&P Změna IQVIA Holdings (IQV) +14 % Corning (GLW) -19 % Sherwin-Williams (SHW) +8,6 % Sandisk Corp (SNDK) -17 % Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) +7,8 % Dell Technologies (DELL) -15 % Gartner (IT) +7,4 % Coherent Corp (COHR) -15 % Solventum Corp (SOLV) +7,2 % Lumentum Holdings (LITE) -14 %
Zdroj: Bloomberg
South Korea’s KOSPI just handed global chip investors a jolt. The index closed down 10.84% overnight, with memory names leading the wreck: Samsung fell 13.39% and SK Hynix fell 14.65%. The massive drop in the Kospi is reverberating across the globe. Investors are fleeing to safety with DOW Futures up .21%. However, as of 6:30 a.m. ET, Nasdaq futures are down 0.84%, while chip stocks are dropping far harder in premarket.
Micron Leads Pre-Market Declines Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU | MU Price Prediction) is down 5.4%, and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) is down 2.9%. This lands after yesterday was another in a long series of sell-offs across momentum and chips stocks. The iShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF (CBOE: MTUM), which tracks momentum stocks, was down 1.33% yesterday and is down 1.93% pre-market. The ETF is down nearly 14% from recent highs in pre-market trading.
Micron shares are already down 20.49% over the past month, yet fundamentals remain a different story: fiscal Q3 revenue of $41.46 billion and Q4 guidance of $50.0 billion ± $1.0 billion. SMH holds MU at 9.39%, so memory pressure hits the ETF directly. The VIX at 18.58 signals no broad panic yet, suggesting this is sector-specific, for now.
KOSPI Now Down 34% From Recent Highs The KOSPI closed at 9,114.55 on June 22nd. At today’s close, it’s now at 6,023.66. That’s a 34% drop in a little more than a month. Despite this massive drop, the index is up 43% year-to-date. The Nasdaq opened in positive territory yesterday, but dropped after reports NVIDIA (Nasdaq: NVDA) was preparing up to $750 billion in new financing and partnerships with OpenAI and SK Hynix.
What to Watch Today The KOSPI unwind has clearly spread across technology and momentum stocks. After a furious rally in April and May, valuations became stretched on many popular names. Korean investors became deeply concentrated in leveraged products that make the unwind even more painful. Watch to see whether ETFs like SMH and MTUM continue to severely underperform the index. If they’re both deep red and the Dow is in positive territory when markets open, we’re seeing the continuation of a broad rally out of risk assets.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Key Points:Nasdaq-100 futures fell 0.73% as Asia’s chip selloff spread to Micron, AMD and Nvidia before the U.S. open.Micron trades below its 50-day average, with $804 support separating the stock from a deeper retracement.Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Apple earnings will decide whether semiconductor sellers press the AI trade lower.
PREMIUM
Read what the experts are trading this weekExclusive analysis from FXEmpire top analysts — curated insights you won't find on the free site.
In-depth analysis
Curated reports
Top analysts
Unlock Premium
Asia Chip Selloff Hits Nasdaq Before the Bell The semiconductor selling that started on Wall Street Monday went through Asia overnight and is coming right back. SK Hynix dropped 14.65%, Samsung lost more than 13% and South Korea’s Kospi fell 10.84% after trading was halted. Tokyo Electron fell nearly 11%, Kioxia dropped more than 18% and Taiwan’s TSMC closed down nearly 3%.
The damage is now showing up in U.S. premarket with Micron down more than 4%, AMD and Marvell off about 3% each and Nvidia lower roughly 1.2%. The AI spending debate that Alphabet started last week has gone global and Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Apple reporting later this week are the only thing that can stop it.
Nasdaq-100 futures are down 0.73%. S&P 500 futures are off 0.1%. Dow futures are up about 86 points or +0.16%.
Asia Showed This Is Not a One-Market Problem SK Hynix and Samsung are two of the biggest suppliers of high-bandwidth memory going into AI servers. When they drop 13% to 14% in a single session, the U.S. chip names that depend on the same spending cycle feel it immediately.
The hyperscalers spend the money. Nvidia sells the processors. SK Hynix, Samsung and Micron supply the memory. Equipment makers like ASML, Tokyo Electron and Advantest fill the rest of the chain. Investors are selling the entire chain, not one name.
Daily Micron Technology Inc. Micron is trading on the weak side of its 50-day moving average at $957.32, confirming the trend remains down. The moving average and the main top at $1011.77 are resistance. A weaker opening Tuesday could drive the stock into its last main bottom at $804.00 and a break through that level puts the long-term retracement zone at $783.25 to $671.91 on the radar.
Reports that China is making progress in memory chips and immersion deep-ultraviolet lithography equipment are adding another layer of pressure. ASML fell more than 8% Monday and the concern is not just about near-term earnings anymore. It is about whether the competitive landscape is shifting underneath the valuation the market already paid.
Earnings Are the Only Thing That Stops This Amazon, Meta and Microsoft report later this week with Apple also on the calendar. Their guidance determines whether the chip selloff becomes a deeper correction or resets before the next leg higher. If the companies keep raising capex plans without showing a clearer path to revenue, semiconductor sellers stay aggressive. If management can show AI spending converting into demand, margins and cash flow, the group stabilizes fast.
Lower oil has not helped and that tells you the problem. Brent is below $90 and the 10-year yield has eased toward 4.65% but chip stocks are still falling because this is not about rates or inflation right now. It is about whether the AI buildout can support the valuations attached to it.
Wednesday’s FOMC decision and Warsh’s press conference add another layer. A message that keeps September tightening expectations alive is one more headwind for the highest-valuation names in the market.
The Dow is holding because financials and industrials are not part of this trade. The Nasdaq is carrying all the weight because semiconductors are still the center of the growth story.
Daily September E-mini Nasdaq-100 Index Futures Daily September E-mini Nasdaq 100 Index Futures September E-mini Nasdaq-100 Index futures are trading lower in the premarket session. Earlier in the session, the index hit an intraday low at 27839.50 before bouncing back. The index is in a five-day retreat, accelerating after breaking the June 9 bottom at 28512.00. This is now the nearest resistance.
Momentum is driving the trade early Tuesday with sellers likely setting their sights on the long-term retracement zone at 27142.25 to 26208.25. Inside this area is the 200-day moving average at 26967.23. To some, this may be considered a value area so don’t be surprised by a technical bounce if tested.
Daily September E-mini S&P 500 Index Futures Daily September E-mini S&P 500 Index September E-mini S&P 500 Index futures are inching lower early Tuesday. Traders hit the E-mini Nasdaq-100 Index hard during the pre-market session. The benchmark index was able to survive a test of the July 23 main bottom at 7411.75. A sustained move under this level could trigger a further decline into the June 26 main bottom at 7357.25 and the June 11 main bottom at 7292.25. The latter is a potential trigger point for an acceleration into the 200-day moving average at 7128.53 and the long-term retracement zone at 7047.75 to 6895.25.
On the upside, the nearest resistance is the short-term retracement zone at 7493.00 to 7540.50 and the 50-day moving average at 7531.11.
Daily September E-mini Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Daily September E-mini Dow Jones Industrial Average September E-mini Dow futures are edging higher for a third session, following a successful test of the 50-day moving average at 51895 and a short-term retracement zone at 51882 to 51463.00.
On the upside, traders could face headwinds at a pair of 50% retracement levels at 52674 and 53000. The last minor top before the 53656 all-time high is 53113.
What to Watch The chip selling went global overnight and the only reports that can stop it are landing later this week. Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Apple have to show the market that the AI spending is producing returns. Tuesday’s consumer-confidence report and earnings from Coca-Cola, Corning and Boeing fill the calendar but the chip trade is the only story driving the Nasdaq lower.
The Nasdaq-100 broke below key support and momentum is pointed toward the long-term retracement zone and the 200-day average. The S&P 500 is holding above its July bottom but a break opens a path toward deeper support and its own 200-day average well below. The Dow is the outlier, edging higher for a third session after holding its 50-day average. The split between the Dow and the Nasdaq tells you exactly where the problem is and earnings are the only thing that fixes it.
More Information in our Economic Calendar.
Related Articles
Nasdaq 100, Dow Jones 30, and S&P 500 Forecast – Dow Eyes 53,000 Breakout While Nasdaq Tests 28,500MSTR, CRCL, and COIN Forecasts – Crypto Stocks Drift Softly Ahead of Thursday EarningsPalo Alto Networks (PANW) Price Forecast: Is a Deeper Correction Taking Shape?About the Author
James Hyerczyk is a U.S. based seasoned technical analyst and educator with over 40 years of experience in market analysis and trading, specializing in chart patterns and price movement. He is the author of two books on technical analysis and has a background in both futures and stock markets.
The artificial intelligence boom has created one of the broadest rallies the semiconductor industry has experienced in decades. Graphics processors grabbed the headlines first, but the scramble to build AI infrastructure quickly spread to networking, optical components, power equipment, cooling systems, and memory. Every piece of the AI supply chain suddenly mattered because hyperscalers were racing to deploy capacity faster than suppliers could manufacture it.
Few industries benefited more than memory. High-bandwidth memory (HBM), enterprise SSDs, and data-center storage all became bottlenecks, allowing suppliers to command premium pricing while investors rewarded them with premium valuations. That combination produced eye-popping stock gains.
Now the same forces that fueled the rally are beginning to work in reverse, raising an uncomfortable question for investors: Has the AI memory boom merely paused, or has the cycle already begun turning lower?
AI’s Biggest Winners Are Suddenly the Biggest Losers Memory stocks delivered returns few sectors could match over the past year.
Company Peak 12-Month Gain Decline From High Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU | MU Price Prediction) 657% -33% Sandisk (NASDAQ:SNDK) 2,700%+ -50% Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) 571% -42% Seagate (NASDAQ:STX) 405% -34% Those declines look painful in isolation. Surprisingly, they also demonstrate just how extraordinary the previous rally had become. Even after losing one-third to one-half of their value, every company except newly public SK Hynix (NASDAQ:SKHY) still trades hundreds of percentage points above where it began the AI memory run.
SK Hynix’s U.S. IPO illustrates how quickly sentiment has changed. After pricing at $149 per share, the stock opened at $170 and climbed to nearly $195 within days. Since then, it has unraveled, recently falling below $137 — about 8% beneath its IPO price and roughly 30% below its post-debut high.
That shortage is beginning to ease. Manufacturers have expanded HBM capacity aggressively while NAND and DRAM production continues to increase. At the same time, China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) just held a widely anticipated IPO that could fund another wave of domestic memory expansion, increasing competitive pressure over the coming years.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
The market is already discounting that future. South Korea’s KOSPI index has fallen roughly 29% over the past month, officially entering bear market territory after another sharp sell-off, including an approximate 11% decline yesterday. Because memory manufacturers represent such a large share of Korea’s technology sector, the weakness has rippled throughout global semiconductor stocks.
The selling has not stopped with memory. Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) has fallen roughly 17% from recent highs while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM) has declined about 20%, suggesting investors are reassessing AI infrastructure valuations more broadly rather than targeting one niche.
Cycles Still Matter Memory has always been among the semiconductor industry’s most cyclical businesses. Shortages eventually become oversupply, pricing falls, profits compress, and valuations follow.
Granted, today’s AI demand remains far stronger than previous PC or smartphone cycles. HBM demand should continue growing for years as next-generation AI systems require more memory per GPU.
That said, stock prices often peak well before earnings do. Even after their corrections, many memory companies continue trading at valuation multiples that assume years of elevated profitability. If supply expands faster than demand, estimates may still prove too optimistic.
Key Takeaway In short, the AI memory story is not broken — but the easy money likely has already been made. The sector ran far ahead of fundamentals as shortages pushed pricing and investor expectations to unusual levels. Now capacity additions, new competition from China, and the memory industry’s long history of boom-and-bust cycles are pulling valuations back toward reality.
Ultimately, patient investors should resist the temptation to view every 30% or 40% decline as a bargain. The long-term AI tailwinds remain intact, but history suggests memory stocks rarely bottom after the first leg down. Regardless of how attractive the industry looks over the next decade, smart investors may find better entry points if this correction continues to play out.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
The chip-stock bloodbath that started in Seoul overnight is crossing the Pacific — and Wall Street’s premarket screens are flashing red.
SNDK stock is red today. See the chart and price action here. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, tracked by the iShares PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector Index Fund (NASDAQ:SOXX), shed about 2% in the prior session.
The Kospi TriggerThe trigger was a brutal overnight session in South Korea, where the Kospi slumped 10.8% as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix — down 13.4% and 14.7%, respectively — got hit by a wave of retail-leverage unwind.
SK Hynix has now lost 47% of its value since the end of June; Samsung is off 38% over the same stretch, according to Trade Nation’s David Morrison.
Adding fuel to the fire: China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), fresh off a jaw-dropping 470% IPO debut Monday, is now cooling but remains China’s most valuable listed company — a fresh reminder that Beijing’s chip ambitions are creeping closer to Samsung and SK Hynix’s turf.
Nvidia’s own eye-popping ~$500 billion AI-memory supply agreement with SK Hynix (NASDAQ:SKHY) — meant to be bullish — is instead being read by some as proof of just how much capital the AI buildout is devouring.
Watch the open: if Micron, AMD, Nvidia and Applied Materials can’t stabilize early in the session, expect the “memory supercycle” narrative that’s driven this year’s AI trade to come under further scrutiny.
Photo: Shutterstock
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Index gained strong ground on Monday as investors returned to emerging resources stocks, with several companies advancing drilling programs, feasibility studies and development plans across gold, copper and uranium projects.
The XSO climbed 48.10 points, or 1.47%, to close at 3,326.60.
The index has also moved 12.50 points higher over the past five trading days, representing a gain of 0.38%.
Small-cap explorers and developers have delivered a series of operational updates spanning Newfoundland and Labrador, Zambia, Côte d’Ivoire and Western Australia. You can read about the following and more throughout the day.
AuMEGA begins maiden drilling at new targets AuMEGA Metals Ltd (ASX:AAM, TSX:AUM, OTCQB:AUMMF, FRA:FRA: MA30) has started diamond drilling at the Isle aux Morts Granite and adjoining Cape Ray West area in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
The work forms part of the company’s 2026 exploration program along the Cape Ray Shear Zone and marks the first time either target area has been drill-tested.
Initial drilling will investigate structural, geochemical and geophysical targets identified through AuMEGA’s regional exploration campaign and updated geological interpretation.
The program is designed to test the potential for mineralisation around the Isle aux Morts Granite and across the neighbouring Cape Ray West area.
Atomic Eagle extends uranium mineralisation Atomic Eagle Ltd (ASX:AEU, FRA:6QZ0) continued drilling at the Muntanga Uranium Project in Zambia during the June quarter, with work focused on the Chisebuka target.
The program is testing for mineralisation outside the existing resource boundary while seeking to extend higher-grade uranium zones.
Chisebuka hosts an inferred resource of 19.9 million tonnes at 220 parts per million uranium oxide for 9.7 million pounds of contained uranium oxide.
Atomic Eagle completed 42 holes for 4,209 metres during the reported program, with 13 of the first 15 holes intersecting uranium mineralisation beyond the defined resource area.
The results also expanded a higher-grade zone in the southwest and demonstrated continuity between this area and the existing resource.
Aurum advances Boundiali toward development Aurum Resources Ltd (ASX:AUE) delivered a pre-feasibility study and maiden ore reserve for the Boundiali Gold Project in Côte d’Ivoire during the June quarter.
The study outlined a technically robust, large-scale open-pit development based on a six-million-tonne-per-annum processing operation.
Boundiali now has a maiden probable ore reserve of 42.1 million tonnes at 0.9 grams per tonne gold for 1.21 million ounces across four open pits.
At an assumed gold price of US$4,076 an ounce, the study estimated life-of-mine post-tax free cash flow of US$2 billion, post-tax net present value of US$1.5 billion and a post-tax internal rate of return of 119%.
The project carries estimated pre-production capital expenditure of US$342 million and an average life-of-mine all-in sustaining cost of US$1,951 an ounce.
Aurum has also increased the Boundiali mineral resource to 3.22 million ounces, including a 24% increase in indicated resources to 1.70 million ounces.
The company is targeting a final investment decision in the fourth quarter of 2026 and first gold production during the first half of 2028.
A definitive feasibility study is now underway alongside drilling, contractor engagement and other early development work.
Carnavale progresses Kookynie feasibility studies Carnavale Resources Ltd (ASX:CAV, FRA:YBB) concentrated its June-quarter activities on advancing the high-grade Kookynie Gold Project in Western Australia.
The company updated the project’s mineral resource estimate and progressed technical studies supporting a bankable feasibility study.
Kookynie now hosts 855,000 tonnes at 4.4 grams per tonne gold for 120,000 ounces, representing a 2.5% increase from the July 2025 estimate.
Measured and indicated resources account for 67% of the total estimate, including a measured resource of 182,000 tonnes at 5.1 grams per tonne for 30,000 ounces.
Carnavale is assessing a staged development strategy involving an initial low-capital open-pit operation, followed by a transition to underground mining.
Ore would be processed through a nearby third-party toll treatment facility.
More than 5,000 metres of aircore drilling is scheduled to begin this quarter, targeting structural positions along the prospective Puzzle granite-greenstone contact.
FireFly builds Green Bay copper case FireFly Metals Ltd (ASX:FFM, TSX:FFM, OTC:FFMFF) reported further strong drilling results from its Green Bay Copper-Gold Project in Newfoundland and Labrador during the June quarter.
The company maintained a multi-rig underground campaign that continued to demonstrate the scale and continuity of Green Bay’s high-grade Core Zone.
FireFly is also progressing economic studies examining a larger-scale restart of production, with the results expected in August 2026.
During the quarter, the company completed the sale of its 70% interest in the Pickle Crow Gold Project and its entire Sioux Lookout Project in Ontario.
FireFly was also promoted into the S&P/ASX 200 Index, marking another step in the company’s transition from explorer toward potential copper producer.
AuMEGA Metals Ltd (ASX:AAM, TSX:AUM, OTCQB:AUMMF, FRA:FRA: MA30) has launched diamond drilling at the Isle aux Morts Granite and Cape Ray West in Newfoundland and Labrador, marking the first tests of several priority exploration targets along the Cape Ray Shear Zone.
The campaign represents the opening phase of AuMEGA’s 2026 drilling program and will investigate areas that have never previously been drilled.
Targets were developed by combining geological mapping, surface geochemistry, geophysical surveys and structural interpretation across a comparatively underexplored section of the company’s extensive landholding.
Testing new targets along major gold structure The Isle aux Morts Granite is a prominent geological feature in the western portion of AuMEGA’s property.
Previous exploration identified prospective structural corridors and geochemical gold anomalies along and adjacent to the granite contact, providing the company with an opportunity to test new geological concepts in a district containing several known gold deposits and mineralised trends.
Drilling will also investigate interpreted structures at Cape Ray West, several kilometres southwest of AuMEGA’s existing mineral resources.
The area is considered prospective because of its position within the broader Cape Ray Shear Zone and supporting geological, geochemical and geophysical indicators.
Initial holes are designed to establish the subsurface geology, test interpreted structures and determine whether alteration or mineralisation is present.
Pipeline of drill targets AuMEGA managing director and chief executive officer Sam Pazuki said commencing drilling was an important milestone for the company’s 2026 exploration strategy.
“The Isle aux Morts Granite and Cape Ray West areas have emerged as priority targets following the integration of several seasons of geological, geochemical and geophysical work,” he said.
“This comes as we spent much of the past two years building a pipeline of drill targets.”
Pazuki said the early-stage targets were supported by a clear geological rationale and located within a highly prospective structural setting.
“The objective of this initial drilling is to test the underlying geological concepts, improve our understanding of the area and determine whether these target corridors warrant more extensive follow-up,” he said.
Bunker Hill drilling to follow Once drilling at Isle aux Morts Granite and Cape Ray West is complete, AuMEGA expects to move the drill rig to Bunker Hill later in the northern summer while awaiting assay results from the initial program.
The broader campaign forms part of the company’s systematic approach to evaluating its large and underexplored landholding along the Cape Ray Shear Zone.
Pazuki said the work represented another step toward AuMEGA’s objective of making a major new discovery in Newfoundland.
Prediction market traders are signaling that Micron (NASDAQ: MU) is likely to finish July above $1,100 despite the stock’s recent pullback from record highs.
Data from Polymarket shows traders assigning the highest probability to Micron closing above $1,340 by July 31. The $1,340 threshold carried a 14% probability, the highest among the listed price levels.
The next most likely outcome was a close above $1,120 at 13%, while the $1,140, $1,160, $1,180, $1,200, $1,260, and $1,280 levels each carried a 10% probability.
Traders assigned a 9% chance of Micron finishing above $1,240 and an 8% probability of ending the month above $1,100.
At the lower end of the range, the market assigned a 5% probability to a close above $1,220, while the chances of Micron ending July above $1,300 and $1,320 stood at 1% and 3%, respectively.
MU stock price prediction. Source: Polymarket Micron’s strong fundamentals The optimism reflected in Polymarket’s forecasts is underpinned by Micron’s strong fundamentals and growing exposure to the AI infrastructure boom.
In fiscal Q3 2026, ended in May, Micron reported revenue of $41.46 billion, up 346% year-over-year, while adjusted EPS jumped to $25.11 from $1.91. Gross margins expanded to 84.6%-85% from about 38% a year earlier.
Demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM), a key AI component, remains robust, with much of Micron’s HBM capacity already sold out through 2026 and 2027.
The company’s data center business has achieved an annualized revenue run rate exceeding $100 billion, while adjusted free cash flow reached approximately $18 billion during the quarter.
Micron has also improved revenue visibility through more than 16 strategic customer agreements across data center, automotive, and consumer markets, representing about $100 billion in minimum future revenue commitments.
Partnerships with Anthropic, Ford, General Motors, Hyundai Mobis, Harman, Qualcomm, and Denso further strengthen its position in the AI and automotive sectors.
Meanwhile, the technology firm is expanding production capacity, with planned U.S. manufacturing investments exceeding $250 billion through 2035.
MU stock retreat Despite its strong fundamentals, Micron stock has retreated from its all-time high near $1,255 reached after earnings. As of press time, MU shares traded at $900, leaving the stock well below its peak.
MU one-week stock price chart. Source: Finbold However, bullish sentiment remains intact after the semiconductor company guided for approximately $50 billion in fourth-quarter revenue, plus or minus $1 billion, alongside adjusted EPS of about $31 and gross margins near 86%, all above Wall Street expectations.
Shares of China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies exploded onto the Shanghai A-share market on Monday, July 27, 2026, closing up roughly 466% after intraday gains reached as much as 531% to 535%. The debut reordered the global memory landscape and pressured Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU | MU Price Prediction), the only U.S.-based DRAM manufacturer.
The IPO raised 57.92 billion yuan (about $8.55 to $8.6 billion) at 8.66 yuan per share, marking the largest IPO in mainland Chinese semiconductor history. CXMT closed with a market capitalization near 3.2 to 3.68 trillion yuan (about $460 to $488 billion), making it the most valuable company listed on China’s A-share market. Turnover topped 140 billion yuan in a single day, reportedly the first A-share ever to clear 100 billion yuan in one session. The company makes DRAM used in phones, PCs, tablets, and servers.
A Genuine DRAM Threat CXMT’s global DRAM market share climbed to roughly 7.6% to 7.67% around the turn of the year, up from about 4.7% a quarter earlier. That compares with Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron at roughly 39%, 29%, and 22%. CXMT is on track to exit 2026 with about 350,000 wafer starts per month, within roughly 25,000 WSPM of Micron’s capacity. Nomura projects CXMT’s share could rise from about 10% currently to roughly 18% by the end of 2028.
The HBM Moat The catch: more than 98% of CXMT’s revenue comes from commodity DRAM, with effectively no presence in high-bandwidth memory, the AI-accelerator product where Micron dominates. SemiAnalysis data shows CXMT’s DDR5 cost-per-bit is still more than 30% above peers. Benzinga reported analysts view CXMT as “at least one generation behind” in HBM.
Micron’s HBM pipeline underscores that gap. The company said HBM4 built on 1-beta DRAM is in high-volume shipments, with HBM4E volume production expected in calendar 2027. CEO Sanjay Mehrotra told investors last month that “Micron’s record fiscal Q3 financial results and even stronger outlook for Q4 reflect the strategic value of memory in the AI era.”
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Micron’s Reaction and What It Means Micron shares slipped roughly 13.3% over the past week and 18.6% over the past month around the IPO window, closing at $900.20 on July 27. That follows an extraordinary run: Micron’s market value crossed $1 trillion on May 26, 2026, doubling in 48 days. UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri lifted his price target from $535 to $1,625, citing a “structurally durable” HBM supply-demand imbalance.
Fiscal Q3 revenue reached $41.46 billion, with Q4 guidance at $50.0 billion, plus or minus $1.0 billion. Micron’s HBM capacity is reportedly sold out through 2026, with demand exceeding supply by an estimated 50% to 67%, and HBM4 shipments for Nvidia’s Vera Rubin platform began in March 2026.
Room For Both, For Now Goldman Sachs estimates a 2026 DRAM supply-demand gap of 4.9%, the most severe shortage in 15 years, with DRAM spot prices up 52% since January 2026 and tight supply expected through 2027. Micron has also been shifting toward multi-year supply agreements at pre-negotiated pricing, a buffer against commodity swings CXMT may amplify. Wall Street’s median price target on Micron sits at $1,500, but Polymarket traders assign a 59.5% probability to a down day for MU on the IPO announcement, capturing the split view neatly.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Micron, Nvidia and AMD stocks fell sharply before Wall Street opened on Tuesday as investors questioned whether the artificial-intelligence chip boom can withstand stronger Chinese competition and increasingly expensive data-centre financing.
At 5:32 am ET on July 28, Micron was down 4.4%, Nvidia had lost 1.1% and AMD was roughly 3% lower in premarket trading.
The weakness extended Monday’s decline, when Nvidia fell 5%, AMD dropped 5.2% and Micron slipped 2.3%.
The selling was far more severe in Asia.
South Korea’s KOSPI closed 10.84% lower, while SK Hynix sank 14.7% and Samsung Electronics lost 14.4%.
The immediate pressure came from reports that a Chinese state-backed company had begun producing domestic immersion deep-ultraviolet lithography equipment.
DUV machines print circuit patterns on wafers and could help Chinese manufacturers reduce their reliance on Western suppliers.
The development does not mean China has matched ASML’s most advanced equipment.
It nevertheless suggests that export controls may delay rather than permanently prevent Chinese technological progress.
Morningstar equity analyst Jing Jie Yu said China’s advances had unsettled investors worried about established semiconductor leaders.
However, she described the selloff as “largely a knee-jerk reaction and overdone” in comments reported by The Guardian, arguing that incumbents face no immediate meaningful threat.
Micron is particularly exposed because ChangXin Memory Technologies competes in DRAM.
CXMT surged 466% during its Shanghai debut after raising $8.6 billion, highlighting the capital available for China’s memory ambitions.
CXMT remains behind Micron in advanced high-bandwidth memory.
The longer-term concern is that new conventional DRAM capacity could replace imports in China, pressure global prices and reduce the valuation premium attached to established producers.
The selloff also reflects discomfort over how the next wave of AI infrastructure will be financed.
Nvidia fell 5% on Monday after The Wall Street Journal reported that it was discussing a roughly $250 billion financing guarantee for an OpenAI data-centre project in Ohio.
The proposed support could lower the project’s borrowing costs, but it revived concerns about circular funding.
Investors are asking whether chip suppliers will increasingly need to support customers financially to sustain demand for their own products.
Swissquote senior analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya noted that Nvidia’s five-year credit-default swap rose alongside the share decline.
AMD is being sold mainly as a read-through from the wider spending cycle.
Its Instinct accelerators, EPYC processors and Helios systems require cloud providers and model developers to keep expanding infrastructure.
Micron needs the same customers to continue buying HBM and data-centre DRAM.
UBS Global Wealth Management chief investment officer Mark Haefele said “uncertainty over the durability of capex and revenue growth” was hurting chip stocks.
Microsoft and Meta report on Wednesday, followed by Apple and Amazon on Thursday.
Investors will examine cash flow, AI revenue and capital-expenditure plans for evidence that spending remains profitable and financeable.
Memory and storage stocks are getting hammered again in Tuesday premarket trading. As of 7:15 a.m. ET, Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU | MU Price Prediction) is down 6.7%, Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) is down 7.2%, Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) is down 7.6%, and SanDisk (NASDAQ:SNDK) is down 7.3%. Nasdaq futures are down more than 1% heading into the open.
Three Catalysts Are Driving the Selloff Overnight action in Asia set the tone. Memory heavyweights got destroyed: Samsung fell 13% in Korea, SK Hynix fell 15%, and NAND specialist Kioxia fell 18% in Japan. SK Hynix’s US ADR (Nasdaq: SKHY) is down 5.6% in sympathy.
Traders are pointing to three overlapping catalysts. First, reports that China is developing DUV (deep ultraviolet) lithography machines that could ship to customers this year have revived fears that a domestic Chinese semiconductor-equipment industry could flood global markets with capacity in the coming year. That is a direct threat to the memory pricing cycle that has powered these stocks.
Second, reports that NVIDIA is preparing up to $750 billion in partnerships and financing tied to OpenAI and SK Hynix are stoking “circular financing” anxieties inside the AI complex. If the same handful of players are funding each other’s demand, the durability of the memory upcycle looks less clean than the bulls have argued.
Third, Korea’s market is broadly unwinding after becoming overly leveraged during a massive run-up earlier this year. Because the Korean market is dominated by memory names, that unwind is pressuring memory and memory-adjacent stocks worldwide.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
The AI Memory Trade Is Getting Repriced Every one of these names has been a monster. Micron is up 215.6% year to date and 710% over one year, riding blowout earnings that included $41.5 billion in fiscal Q3 revenue and $25.11 non-GAAP EPS (per Micron’s SEC filing). Seagate is up 197% year to date, Western Digital 189%, and SanDisk an eye-watering 438%.
The unwind is already underway. Over the past month, Micron is down 20%, Western Digital is down 15.1%, and SanDisk has cratered 39%. SanDisk alone dropped 11% in Monday’s regular session before Tuesday’s premarket damage. The QQQ, by contrast, is only off 2% over the past week, which shows how concentrated the pain is in memory and storage.
What to Watch These are live premarket numbers as of 7:15 a.m. ET and can move quickly by the open. Fundamentals here have not deteriorated. Micron’s Q4 revenue guide of $50.0 billion ± $1.0 billion and Seagate’s $5.00 ± $0.20 Q4 EPS guide still point higher. Investment bank Nomura released a report this weekend forecasting DRAM sales of $2 trillion by 2030. That’s up from $747 billion in 2026.
The question is how much pain is still ahead as the KOSPI continues to ‘unwind.’ Korea’s market is extremely concentrated on memory stocks and investors used significant leverage during the run-up. That led to massive gains in April and May, but the opposite is now playing out with leverage leading to forced selling across Korea’s market.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
The memory market is having one of its best historical runs ever, helping lift the stocks of both Micron Technology (MU -2.36%) and Sandisk (SNDK -11.02%). Both have seen their revenue soar and their gross margins balloon, leading to record profits and cash flow.
Micron is one of the big three DRAM makers, along with Korean companies SK Hynix (SKHY -7.47%) and Samsung, while it gets nearly a quarter of its revenue from NAND (flash) memory. Sandisk, meanwhile, is a pure-play flash memory maker. The rise in both memory markets is directly linked to the artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure build-out, although the dynamics behind the current supply-demand imbalances are a bit different.
Flash memory was in a major bull market during the COVID-19 pandemic, as stay-at-home mandates led to a surge in demand for electronics, which are heavy users of flash memory. This led memory makers to increase their NAND capacity, while demand crashed after the pandemic ended. This led to a massive oversupply of NAND, negative gross margins, and to the big three memory makers reducing capacity and turning their attention to more lucrative DRAM.
Image source: The Motley Fool.
However, with the AI boom, data centers soon needed massive enterprise solid-state drives (SSDs) packed with NAND to store training data, greatly increasing demand soon after capacity was cut. Meanwhile, the emergence of high-bandwidth memory (HBM), a specialized form of DRAM used in the AI build-out, became the focus for the big three DRAM makers, and they were in no rush to increase NAND capacity. The result was a supply-constrained flash memory market amid soaring demand.
A similar dynamic was at play in DRAM, as graphics processing units (GPUs) and other AI chips needed to be packaged with HBM to reduce latency and improve power efficiency. As demand for GPUs grew, so did demand for HBM. As DRAM makers focused on increasing HBM capacity, the entire DRAM market became undersupplied, and prices rose sharply.
Historically, the memory market has been highly cyclical, with large boom-and-bust cycles. As mentioned previously, the last NAND memory cycle collapsed, leading memory companies to dump supply at prices below what it cost them to manufacture. This is a big reason why memory stocks trade at single-digit forward P/Es despite seeing rapid growth.
Today's Change
(
-11.02
%) $
-158.33
Current Price
$
1,278.23
However, there is an argument to be made that this time is different. HBM has become an integral component in the AI infrastructure build-out, and it is likely to remain supply-constrained well into the future. One of the main reasons is that HBM uses the same EUV (extreme ultraviolet lithography) machines used to manufacture GPUs and other advanced logic devices. ASML is the only company in the world with the technology to make these machines, which limits DRAM makers' ability to dramatically increase capacity. At the same time, HBM requires three times the wafer capacity as run-of-the-mill DRAM, further pressuring capacity increases.
As hyperscalers continue to pour money into AI infrastructure, demand for chips and HBM keeps rising. At the same time, the big three DRAM makers have also started signing long-term contracts for the first time. This should help increase visibility and reduce some of the cyclicality of the memory business.
Meanwhile, the supply of flash memory should also remain constrained for the foreseeable future. The leading memory producers are directing critical cleanroom space toward HBM, and new projects won't bring meaningful capacity online anytime soon. The rise of AI agents will also require more long-term memory storage, which should help keep demand high. Memory companies are also now developing high-bandwidth flash (HBF), which could be another catalyst.
Today's Change
(
-2.36
%) $
-21.75
Current Price
$
899.20
With both the DRAM and NAND memory cycles looking very different from past ones, Micron, SK Hynix, Sandisk, and other memory stocks could have a lot more upside ahead. Their current valuations may not reflect what could be a very elongated cycle. As such, these could be among the top AI stocks to buy.
Micron (MU -2.36%) has been one of the hottest stocks over the past year. The stock has tripled in 2026 and is up nearly 700% over the past year, as of this writing. Despite that huge move, the stock trades at a minuscule forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of below 6 times fiscal 2027 (ending August 2027) analyst estimates.
The reason for Micron's low valuation is that the memory market has historically been highly cyclical. With cyclical stocks, history often teaches us to buy when P/Es are high and sell when P/Es are low. The reason for this is that when commoditized markets are booming, companies generally increase capacity, and the markets eventually crash. You can see plenty of examples in memory, natural gas, fertilizer, and shipping, just to name a few markets. Capacity then leaves the market, demand naturally grows, and the next boom cycle is around the corner.
Today's Change
(
-2.36
%) $
-21.75
Current Price
$
899.20
However, there is good reason to think that this memory cycle is much different from past ones. First, it is tied directly to one of the most important technological innovations of our time, artificial intelligence (AI), and the AI capex cycle still looks to be in its early innings. The massive data centers being built require a huge amount of memory, but the industry is failing to keep up with demand.
Micron gets about 75% of its revenue from DRAM (dynamic random access memory), and 25% from NAND (flash). The DRAM market is being driven by demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM), which gets packaged with graphics processing units and other AI chips to increase power efficiency and reduce latency. HBM demand is tied to demand for AI accelerators, but the memory industry is struggling to keep up with capacity. ASML is the only company that makes the machines needed to manufacture both HBM and advanced AI chips, and it can make only so many each year. At the same time, HBM requires about triple the wafer capacity of regular DRAM, further constraining capacity, while advanced packaging capacity is also limited. As a result, it takes much longer to produce HBM.
Image source: The Motley Fool
With the big three memory makers dedicating much of their resources to HBM, overall DRAM and flash supply remains limited, causing prices to skyrocket. This is driving Micron's revenue growth while greatly expanding its gross margins.
While this kind of dynamic would typically correct itself in a couple of years, the industry can't keep up, given the supply hurdles in place and the pace of demand growth. In fact, demand is so strong that chip companies are now racing to lock in long-term deals to secure memory supplies. This bodes well for Micron and is why it seems history won't repeat itself this time around, making Micron a top AI stock to own.
Micron Technology (MU -2.36%) has delivered extraordinary returns so far this year. As of this writing (July 24), Micron stock has surged 224% in 2026 -- making it the second-best performer in the Nasdaq-100. Its gains over the last year are even more striking, as shares have ballooned over 740% from roughly $104 to a current price of $924.
These gains have been powered by the emerging memory supercycle, in which unprecedented demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM) has outstripped supply -- driving both chip volumes and pricing sharply higher. But what if I told you Micron's rally may still have room to run?
Even after substantial momentum has already been priced in, the secular underpinnings of the artificial intelligence (AI) memory market suggest that investors who buy Micron stock today could capture meaningful additional upside through late next year.
Image source: The Motley Fool.
What is the AI memory supercycle? The AI memory boom is rooted in the explosive growth of generative AI models. Training and inference workloads for large language models (LLMs) require vast quantities of HBM stacked on top of graphics processors from Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. Unlike conventional DRAM, this specialized memory delivers extreme data rates and capacity density, creating a bottleneck that only a small number of producers have proven to relieve.
Micron is one of the three global suppliers capable of manufacturing advanced HBM at scale, with SK Hynix and Samsung being its primary competition. The company is aggressively diversifying its manufacturing footprint to capture incremental design wins even while the supply remains constrained across the industry.
Today's Change
(
-2.36
%) $
-21.75
Current Price
$
899.20
Is Memory cyclical or secular? Memory has long been a cyclical business. Scaling capacity tends to arrive in waves, producing periods of oversupply that ultimately lead to commoditized pricing, followed by shortages that send both revenue and margins soaring again. Micron's own history illustrates this pattern: Annual revenue swung from $30 billion in fiscal 2018 down to $15.5 billion in 2023 before rebounding again in 2025.
MU Revenue (Annual) data by YCharts.
AI is rewriting this script entirely. Memory demand is no longer driven by just consumer electronics or PC refresh cycles. Rather, memory chips now directly touch the multiyear capital expenditure (capex) programs from the AI hyperscalers. Micron is taking advantage of big tech's accelerating infrastructure by locking in long-term supply agreements that stretch into 2027 and beyond. This grants the company both pricing power and a level of revenue visibility never seen before.
Looking even further ahead, new generations of AI models should grow in parameter count and context length. This means next-generation applications in autonomous systems, robotics, and more will require incremental memory bandwidth and capacity. As the hyperscalers increase their infrastructure budgets to support larger systems, Micron's unit volumes and average selling prices should keep expanding.
What could Micron stock be worth next year? Micron's fiscal year ends in late August. Wall Street's consensus estimate for Micron's fiscal 2027 revenue is approximately $239 billion. Currently, Micron stock trades at a price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of 11.5 -- more than triple its 10-year average.
With that said, analysts are split on how robust the company's growth will be beyond this point as new capacity comes online and memory producers scale their supply to better match demand shortages. While the current premium is arguably justified by the scale of the AI infrastructure era, smart investors understand that Micron need not maintain this multiple for its stock to continue soaring.
MU PS Ratio data by YCharts. PS Ratio = price-to-sales ratio.
Even if Micron's P/S multiple normalizes to a more moderate range of between 8x and 10x, the sheer growth in the company's top line can still produce substantial share price appreciation. Applying this to Micron's 2027 revenue estimates derives an implied market capitalization between $1.9 trillion and $2.4 trillion. Compared to the company's current market value of $1.1 trillion, these outcomes translate into gains of between 72% and 118% by the time fiscal 2027 results are published.
The combination of durable revenue growth and a reasonable P/S multiple leaves room for Micron to deliver meaningful valuation expansion for investors willing to look past the momentum already embedded in the price.
Shares of major chipmakers fell sharply on Monday after reports that a state-backed Chinese firm has begun mass-producing domestic deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines.
ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME) dropped more than 7% as China's progress in domestic DUV production threatens the Dutch company's sales of older-generation tools in the region. Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD) also fell 7.3% and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) was down nearly 5% by midday.
China has been unable to obtain extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines from ASML, the sole global manufacturer, after export controls blocked access starting in 2019. But Chinese firms stockpiled a large fleet of older DUV machines before restrictions tightened, and companies including SMIC and Huawei have used multi-patterning techniques on those tools to produce near-frontier chips.
The export control regime was designed to keep China several years behind at the leading edge. DUV multi-patterning is slower, lower-yield and more expensive than EUV production, but it is proving sufficient for near-frontier chips, unsettling policymakers and investors who had assumed China faced tighter constraints.
The declines also reflect broader valuation concerns, as high expectations tied to AI infrastructure spending have left sector rallies vulnerable to profit-taking amid shifting macroeconomic conditions.
4:15pm: Nasdaq in the red The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished higher on Monday, while the Nasdaq edged lower as weakness in semiconductor stocks offset broader market gains and a sharp drop in oil prices boosted sentiment elsewhere.
The Dow climbed 263 points, or 0.5%, to 52,210. The S&P 500 was little changed, adding just 1.2 points to close at 7,413, while the Nasdaq fell 44 points, or 0.2%, to 24,932.
Chip stocks weighed on the technology-heavy Nasdaq after Nvidia dropped more than 4%, adding pressure across the semiconductor sector. Shares of ASML also fell more than 5% after The Information reported that a Chinese state-backed company had begun mass-producing a critical piece of chipmaking equipment, raising fresh questions about competition in the industry.
Elsewhere, crude plunged more than 9% as optimism grew that a diplomatic path could emerge to help bring an end to the war, easing concerns about global energy supplies.
Investors will now turn their attention to another busy stretch of earnings. Applied Digital is set to report after Monday’s closing bell, while Boeing, Coca-Cola, PayPal and UPS are among the major companies scheduled to release results before the market opens on Tuesday.
3:45pm: Proactive news headlines NextSource Materials Inc. (TSX:NEXT, OTCQB:NSRCF) reported positive results from an updated feasibility study for the Phase 2 expansion of its Molo Graphite Mine in Madagascar, outlining plans to increase production capacity to 150,000 tonnes of flake graphite concentrate per year over a 37-year mine life. Medicus Pharma (NASDAQ:MDCX) received FDA authorization to begin its Phase 2b registrational study of SkinJect for patients with Gorlin syndrome who develop multiple basal cell carcinomas. Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd (TSX-V:GMG, OTCQX:GMGMF) announced that Blackwoods will distribute its liquid graphene products, G LUBRICANT and THERMAL-XR, across Australia through its nationwide industrial supply network. Nextech3D.AI (CSE:NTAR, OTCQX:NEXCF, FRA:1SS) said it expects to complete its acquisition of the remaining shares of ARway Corporation that it does not already own in October following the signing of a definitive agreement. First Phosphate Corp. (CSE:PHOS, OTCQX:FRSPF, FRA:KD0, OTC:FPHOY) said its Bégin-Lamarche phosphate mining project has received accelerated support status from Quebec's Ministry of Natural Resources and Forests to help speed up development milestones. 2:50pm: Market movers Forte Biosciences (NASDAQ:FBRX) shares jumped after argenx agreed to acquire the biotechnology company for approximately $2.2 billion, offering shareholders $77 per share in cash following positive Phase 1b results for its vitiligo treatment candidate FB102. ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME) (ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME), ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME)), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD) (Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD)) and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) (Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU)) shares declined after reports that China has begun mass-producing domestic deep ultraviolet lithography machines, raising concerns about competition for ASML’s older-generation chipmaking equipment and broader semiconductor supply chains. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ:CBRL) shares fell after the restaurant chain named David Deno as its next CEO, replacing Julie Masino who will step down from the role but remain as an adviser through October. SpaceX Corp (NASDAQ:SPCX) shares dropped to a record low as investors weighed concerns over an upcoming share lock-up expiration, valuation, rising capital spending and financing needs despite the company’s recent Starship test flight success. Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR) shares plunged after FDA reviewers raised concerns about the effectiveness of its experimental cell therapy deramiocel for Duchenne muscular dystrophy-associated cardiomyopathy ahead of an advisory committee review. 1:45pm: Attack pause doesn't calm markets Investors are paying more attention to volatility in the tech sector than to the temporary pause in the conflict, according to IG's Chris Beauchamp, which means "more trouble ahead."
"Earlier optimism around a pause in fighting did not last once the US session began, and investors took the earlier gains as a chance to cut back exposure yet further in battered tech stocks," Beauchamp noted.
"The Nasdaq 100 fell to its lowest level since early May, hit hard by a 3% drop in Nvidia. While a lack of hostilities is good news all round, the fears hitting markets are broader than that, and in any case, there is too much event this week to go charging back into stocks.”
12:40pm: Chip stocks slide Shares of major chipmakers fell sharply on Monday after reports that a state-backed Chinese firm has begun mass-producing domestic deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines.
ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME) (ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME), ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME)) dropped more than 7% as China's progress in domestic DUV production threatens the Dutch company's sales of older-generation tools in the region. Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD) (Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD)) also fell 7.3% and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) (Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU)) was down nearly 5% by midday.
China has been unable to obtain extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines from ASML, the sole global manufacturer, after export controls blocked access starting in 2019. But Chinese firms stockpiled a large fleet of older DUV machines before restrictions tightened, and companies including SMIC and Huawei have used multi-patterning techniques on those tools to produce near-frontier chips.
11:45am: Nvidia funding OpenAI data center? Over the weekend the Wall Street Journal reporrted that Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD) (Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD), Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD)) is in talks to provide a roughly $250 billion financial guarantee to support OpenAI's planned data center project in Ohio.
The report said the proposed guarantee would help OpenAI secure a lease for a planned 10-gigawatt data center campus being developed in southern Ohio by SoftBank's energy subsidiary.
The overall project could ultimately cost more than $500 billion, including the Nvidia chips expected to power the facilities, making it the largest data center project announced to date.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Nvidia's backing would help developers obtain construction financing by addressing lender concerns over OpenAI's non-investment-grade credit profile. The guarantee would apply to lease and construction financing rather than purchases of Nvidia's AI chips.
10:50am: Week ahead Wall Street is heading for a pivotal week as Big Tech earnings, the Federal Reserve's rate decision and key inflation data test a market hovering near record highs.
The busiest stretch begins on Wednesday, when Microsoft and Meta Platforms report earnings before the focus quickly shifts to the Fed's interest rate decision later in the day. Apple and Amazon then take center stage on Thursday, giving investors another read on whether the AI boom is still worth its hefty price tag.
After Tesla and Alphabet were punished last week for rising AI-related capital spending, investors are expected to scrutinize spending plans just as closely at Microsoft, Meta and Amazon. While demand for AI infrastructure remains strong, markets are becoming less forgiving of companies pouring billions into expansion.
Outside Big Tech, earnings season remains in full swing with reports due from Visa, Boeing, Coca-Cola, Qualcomm, Starbucks, Shell, Coinbase, Chevron, ExxonMobil and AbbVie.
The Fed, however, may be the week's biggest catalyst.
Most economists expect policymakers to leave interest rates unchanged in a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, but investors will be paying close attention to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's comments on inflation, economic growth and whether higher oil prices have altered the central bank's outlook.
10am: Dow open higher as oil price falls Wall Street has opened firmly higher, with the Dow adding 481.6 points, or 0.9%, in initial trades. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have both gained 0.5%.
Salesforce leads the Dow with a 3.5% rise, followed by 3M, Sherwin-Williams and Boeing.
Technology names were broadly stronger, with Microsoft up 2.2% and Workday, Oracle, AppLovin and Palantir among the S&P 500 leaders.
Baker Hughes topped the wider index with an 8.6% surge after winning a major order from Venture Global LNG.
8.30am: Dow Jones, S&P and Nasdaq expected to make good start to week Wall Street stocks are predicted to open sharply higher on Monday as a pause in US and Iranian attacks sent oil prices tumbling ahead of a massive week for markets, including a Federal Reserve meeting and earnings from several tech megacaps.
Dow Jones futures were up 568 points, or 1.1%, while those for the S&P 500 gained 0.9% and Nasdaq futures jumped 1.5%.
This follows a volatile week that ended on a mixed note, with the Dow and the S&P finishing slightly higher but losing ground over the five days of trading, while the Nasdaq continued a decline that saw it retreat around 2% from the previous Friday.
At the start of this new week, it has been oil prices on a tear downwards, with West Texas Intermediate crude tumbling 6.3% to $83.66 a barrel, taking its decline since last Thursday to around 10%.
Neither Washington nor Tehran has officially acknowledged a ceasefire, although Iran has said it will refrain from further military action for as long as the US does.
Iran's foreign ministry also confirmed discussions with Oman aimed at establishing arrangements for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, although it denied holding direct negotiations with Washington.
Houthi attacks around the Bab al-Mandeb Strait remain a threat to shipping.
Attention now turns to what Barclays called macro’s “Super Bowl” week, with the Fed's latest pronouncement on Wednesday, with markets pricing in a 34% chance of a quarter-point increase.
Earnings will be equally important. Visa, Coca-Cola, Boeing, S&P Global and PayPal report on Tuesday, followed by Microsoft, Meta, Qualcomm and Starbucks on Wednesday. Apple, Amazon, Mastercard and Coinbase are due Thursday, before ExxonMobil, Chevron, AbbVie and Moderna round out the week on Friday.
4:15pm: Nasdaq in the red The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished higher on Monday, while the Nasdaq edged lower as weakness in semiconductor stocks offset broader market gains and a sharp drop in oil prices boosted sentiment elsewhere.
The Dow climbed 263 points, or 0.5%, to 52,210. The S&P 500 was little changed, adding just 1.2 points to close at 7,413, while the Nasdaq fell 44 points, or 0.2%, to 24,932.
Chip stocks weighed on the technology-heavy Nasdaq after Nvidia dropped more than 4%, adding pressure across the semiconductor sector. Shares of ASML also fell more than 5% after The Information reported that a Chinese state-backed company had begun mass-producing a critical piece of chipmaking equipment, raising fresh questions about competition in the industry.
Elsewhere, crude plunged more than 9% as optimism grew that a diplomatic path could emerge to help bring an end to the war, easing concerns about global energy supplies.
Investors will now turn their attention to another busy stretch of earnings. Applied Digital is set to report after Monday’s closing bell, while Boeing, Coca-Cola, PayPal and UPS are among the major companies scheduled to release results before the market opens on Tuesday.
3:45pm: Proactive news headlines NextSource Materials Inc. (TSX:NEXT, OTCQB:NSRCF) reported positive results from an updated feasibility study for the Phase 2 expansion of its Molo Graphite Mine in Madagascar, outlining plans to increase production capacity to 150,000 tonnes of flake graphite concentrate per year over a 37-year mine life. Medicus Pharma (NASDAQ:MDCX) received FDA authorization to begin its Phase 2b registrational study of SkinJect for patients with Gorlin syndrome who develop multiple basal cell carcinomas. Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd (TSX-V:GMG, OTCQX:GMGMF) announced that Blackwoods will distribute its liquid graphene products, G LUBRICANT and THERMAL-XR, across Australia through its nationwide industrial supply network. Nextech3D.AI (CSE:NTAR, OTCQX:NEXCF, FRA:1SS) said it expects to complete its acquisition of the remaining shares of ARway Corporation that it does not already own in October following the signing of a definitive agreement. First Phosphate Corp. (CSE:PHOS, OTCQX:FRSPF, FRA:KD0, OTC:FPHOY) said its Bégin-Lamarche phosphate mining project has received accelerated support status from Quebec's Ministry of Natural Resources and Forests to help speed up development milestones. 2:50pm: Market movers Forte Biosciences (NASDAQ:FBRX) shares jumped after argenx agreed to acquire the biotechnology company for approximately $2.2 billion, offering shareholders $77 per share in cash following positive Phase 1b results for its vitiligo treatment candidate FB102. ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME) (ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME), ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME)), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD) (Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD)) and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) (Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU)) shares declined after reports that China has begun mass-producing domestic deep ultraviolet lithography machines, raising concerns about competition for ASML’s older-generation chipmaking equipment and broader semiconductor supply chains. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ:CBRL) shares fell after the restaurant chain named David Deno as its next CEO, replacing Julie Masino who will step down from the role but remain as an adviser through October. SpaceX Corp (NASDAQ:SPCX) shares dropped to a record low as investors weighed concerns over an upcoming share lock-up expiration, valuation, rising capital spending and financing needs despite the company’s recent Starship test flight success. Capricor Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CAPR) shares plunged after FDA reviewers raised concerns about the effectiveness of its experimental cell therapy deramiocel for Duchenne muscular dystrophy-associated cardiomyopathy ahead of an advisory committee review. 1:45pm: Attack pause doesn't calm markets Investors are paying more attention to volatility in the tech sector than to the temporary pause in the conflict, according to IG's Chris Beauchamp, which means "more trouble ahead."
"Earlier optimism around a pause in fighting did not last once the US session began, and investors took the earlier gains as a chance to cut back exposure yet further in battered tech stocks," Beauchamp noted.
"The Nasdaq 100 fell to its lowest level since early May, hit hard by a 3% drop in Nvidia. While a lack of hostilities is good news all round, the fears hitting markets are broader than that, and in any case, there is too much event this week to go charging back into stocks.”
12:40pm: Chip stocks slide Shares of major chipmakers fell sharply on Monday after reports that a state-backed Chinese firm has begun mass-producing domestic deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines.
ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME) (ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME), ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ:ASML, XETRA:ASME)) dropped more than 7% as China's progress in domestic DUV production threatens the Dutch company's sales of older-generation tools in the region. Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD) (Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ:AMD, XETRA:AMD)) also fell 7.3% and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) (Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU)) was down nearly 5% by midday.
China has been unable to obtain extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines from ASML, the sole global manufacturer, after export controls blocked access starting in 2019. But Chinese firms stockpiled a large fleet of older DUV machines before restrictions tightened, and companies including SMIC and Huawei have used multi-patterning techniques on those tools to produce near-frontier chips.
11:45am: Nvidia funding OpenAI data center? Over the weekend the Wall Street Journal reporrted that Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD) (Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD), Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD)) is in talks to provide a roughly $250 billion financial guarantee to support OpenAI's planned data center project in Ohio.
The report said the proposed guarantee would help OpenAI secure a lease for a planned 10-gigawatt data center campus being developed in southern Ohio by SoftBank's energy subsidiary.
The overall project could ultimately cost more than $500 billion, including the Nvidia chips expected to power the facilities, making it the largest data center project announced to date.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Nvidia's backing would help developers obtain construction financing by addressing lender concerns over OpenAI's non-investment-grade credit profile. The guarantee would apply to lease and construction financing rather than purchases of Nvidia's AI chips.
10:50am: Week ahead Wall Street is heading for a pivotal week as Big Tech earnings, the Federal Reserve's rate decision and key inflation data test a market hovering near record highs.
The busiest stretch begins on Wednesday, when Microsoft and Meta Platforms report earnings before the focus quickly shifts to the Fed's interest rate decision later in the day. Apple and Amazon then take center stage on Thursday, giving investors another read on whether the AI boom is still worth its hefty price tag.
After Tesla and Alphabet were punished last week for rising AI-related capital spending, investors are expected to scrutinize spending plans just as closely at Microsoft, Meta and Amazon. While demand for AI infrastructure remains strong, markets are becoming less forgiving of companies pouring billions into expansion.
Outside Big Tech, earnings season remains in full swing with reports due from Visa, Boeing, Coca-Cola, Qualcomm, Starbucks, Shell, Coinbase, Chevron, ExxonMobil and AbbVie.
The Fed, however, may be the week's biggest catalyst.
Most economists expect policymakers to leave interest rates unchanged in a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, but investors will be paying close attention to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's comments on inflation, economic growth and whether higher oil prices have altered the central bank's outlook.
10am: Dow open higher as oil price falls Wall Street has opened firmly higher, with the Dow adding 481.6 points, or 0.9%, in initial trades. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have both gained 0.5%.
Salesforce leads the Dow with a 3.5% rise, followed by 3M, Sherwin-Williams and Boeing.
Technology names were broadly stronger, with Microsoft up 2.2% and Workday, Oracle, AppLovin and Palantir among the S&P 500 leaders.
Baker Hughes topped the wider index with an 8.6% surge after winning a major order from Venture Global LNG.
8.30am: Dow Jones, S&P and Nasdaq expected to make good start to week Wall Street stocks are predicted to open sharply higher on Monday as a pause in US and Iranian attacks sent oil prices tumbling ahead of a massive week for markets, including a Federal Reserve meeting and earnings from several tech megacaps.
Dow Jones futures were up 568 points, or 1.1%, while those for the S&P 500 gained 0.9% and Nasdaq futures jumped 1.5%.
This follows a volatile week that ended on a mixed note, with the Dow and the S&P finishing slightly higher but losing ground over the five days of trading, while the Nasdaq continued a decline that saw it retreat around 2% from the previous Friday.
At the start of this new week, it has been oil prices on a tear downwards, with West Texas Intermediate crude tumbling 6.3% to $83.66 a barrel, taking its decline since last Thursday to around 10%.
Neither Washington nor Tehran has officially acknowledged a ceasefire, although Iran has said it will refrain from further military action for as long as the US does.
Iran's foreign ministry also confirmed discussions with Oman aimed at establishing arrangements for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, although it denied holding direct negotiations with Washington.
Houthi attacks around the Bab al-Mandeb Strait remain a threat to shipping.
Attention now turns to what Barclays called macro’s “Super Bowl” week, with the Fed's latest pronouncement on Wednesday, with markets pricing in a 34% chance of a quarter-point increase.
Earnings will be equally important. Visa, Coca-Cola, Boeing, S&P Global and PayPal report on Tuesday, followed by Microsoft, Meta, Qualcomm and Starbucks on Wednesday. Apple, Amazon, Mastercard and Coinbase are due Thursday, before ExxonMobil, Chevron, AbbVie and Moderna round out the week on Friday.
Founder's ClubSwingTraderLeaderboardMarketSurgeeIBDIBD DigitalIBD LiveCustomer Center
My Stock Lists
Email Preferences
Help & Support
Sign Out
Search stocks or keywords
Sections
My IBD
MARKET TREND
STOCK LISTS
STOCK RESEARCH
NEWSECONOMY
VIDEOS & PODCASTS
HOW TO INVESTEDUCATIONAL RESOURCESStoreMy Products
Founder's ClubSwingTraderLeaderboardMarketSurgeeIBDIBD DigitalIBD Live
Recently Searched
Stock Market Week Ahead: Mag 7 And The Fed — But It's All About The Cash
Eli Lilly, Dell Among Stocks To Watch As Market Leadership Shifts
Bank of America Pops To New High, Leads 17 Newcomers To IBD 50, Other Top Stock lists Memory-chip stocks Micron Technology (MU) and SK Hynix (SKHY) fell Monday after Chinese rival ChangXin Memory Technologies, known as CXMT, rocketed in its initial public offering on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. CXMT shares soared 466% in an IPO on Monday, giving the company a market capitalization of $484 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported. CXMT makes dynamic random-access memory (DRAM)…
Micron (MU -4.29%) stock tumbled 5.5% through 1:30 p.m. ET Monday, and it's not hard to guess why:
The Chinese are coming to crash the semiconductor memory chip party.
Image source: Getty Images.
Gangway for CXMT Chinese chipmaker CXMT (short for "ChangXin Memory Technologies") held one of the biggest IPOs in recent memory in China this morning, raising $8.6 billion for its war chest and rocketing 466% on its first day of trading to close with a $487 billion market capitalization.
CXMT is one of two Chinese DRAM suppliers that Apple (AAPL +0.70%) recently sought permission to buy from, to ensure it has access to enough memory chips for its iPhones. CXMT is capitalizing on this good news -- and on the bad news of the global deficit -- by holding its high-profile IPO today, touting its chips as a solution to the deficit that has driven memory prices sky-high this year.
Today's Change
(
-4.29
%) $
-39.52
Current Price
$
881.43
What this means for Micron This is a direct threat to Micron's operating profit margin, which had quadrupled over the past year from 20% to 80%, powering a tremendous rise in the company's profits -- and its stock price.
CXMT specializes in DRAM memory, one of two forms of computer memory that Micron also specializes in. Whether CXMT's chips are of as high quality as Micron's may be debatable, but at the right price, they'll certainly still sell. And now that CXMT has $8.6 billion in new cash to work with, it'll be able to increase production to sell more of them. This will eat into Micron's market share. It will also reduce supply pressures in the global market, helping lower prices.
Less market share and lower prices for DRAM chips? This is a direct attack on Micron's business model -- and investors are right to be nervous.
Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple and Micron Technology. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Live Coverage Updates appear automatically as they are published.
Live Updates 1 hour ago
Live
The following technology companies are lined up to report their quarterly earnings this week. Here’s where there stocks are faring YTD:
Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) up 24.59% for a market cap of $4.9 trillion.
Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) down 18.7%
Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) up 1.04%
Meta (Nasdaq: META) down 8.3%
2 hours ago
Live
High-yield credit is starting to push back against the stock market’s resilience. The iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (NYSE Arca: HYG) has slipped nearly 1% in July and is headed for another down month, which would make it three declines in a row and five in the past six months. Wolfe Research says “the bond market looks worried,” with HYG’s March lows potentially back in play. Stocks are still rotating near highs, while junk debt is trading like investors are getting more selective about risk.
This article will be updated throughout the day, so check back often for more daily updates.
Stocks opened higher Monday as oil prices eased and investors got a weekend pause in U.S.-Iran tensions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 452 points, or 0.9%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.4%. The Nasdaq Composite also traded higher, though the tech-heavy index showed less conviction as investors looked ahead to a heavy megacap earnings slate.
The energy move did most of the early lifting. Brent crude for September delivery slid 6.4% to roughly $90.60 per barrel, while WTI dropped 5.7% to about $84.10. That took some pressure off inflation-sensitive corners of the market and gave bulls a reason to step back in after last week’s choppy tape.
But this is not a clean risk-on setup. Tech is losing some steam just as earnings season moves into its most important stretch, and traders are also staring down a Federal Reserve meeting that could carry more suspense than markets expected a few weeks ago.
Don't wait: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just revealed his top 10 AI stocks. See the full list FREE now.
Here’s a look at where things stand as of early-morning trading:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 52,363 Up 0.80%
Nasdaq Composite: 25,025 Up 0.20%
S&P 500: 7,431 Up 0.26%
Market Movers After trading in the green during pre-market trading, chip equipment stocks reversed course. ASML (Nasdaq: ASML) and U.S. peers including Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Nvidia (Nasdaq: NVDA) and memory semi stock Micron (Nasdaq: MU) are now trading lower after reports that a state-backed Chinese firm has started mass production of domestic DUV lithography machines, pressuring U.S. competition.
CXMT made a blockbuster public debut in China, with shares soaring more than fivefold and instantly turning the memory-chip maker into mainland China’s most valuable company.
In a jockeying of position among Big Tech stocks, Google parent Alphabet (Nasdaq: GOOGL): Alphabet has just reclaimed a $4 trillion market cap.
Cracker Barrel (Nasdaq: CBRL) shares fell after CEO Julie Masino stepped down, ending a tenure marked by a bruising modernization push, culture-war backlash, and activist pressure. The stock’s reaction suggests investors are treating the leadership change less as a clean reset and more as another sign that the turnaround remains messy.
Don't wait: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just revealed his top 10 AI stocks. See the full list FREE now.
Micron (NASDAQ:MU | MU Price Prediction) isn’t the only red-hot memory chip stock in town for U.S. investors anymore. Not with SK Hynix (NASDAQ:SKHY) having a chance to flex its muscles with the hopes of shedding more of its “South Korea discount.” Intense volatility has struck the memory chip companies amid the latest semiconductor slump.
Despite the pain inflicted on semi stocks across the board, though, it hasn’t exactly been a slam dunk for the shorts, with intense volatility in both directions. Despite the potential for near-term squeezes, it certainly feels like gravity is finally getting the better of the semiconductor names, especially the memory chip makers that led the charge up until that June peak.
With shares of Micron now down close to 25% from its highs after a partial recovery that saw shares take a 30% dive from peak to trough, it certainly seems like the value case is growing louder.
What’s changed since shares of Micron peaked last month other than the investor sentiment? Not a whole lot, at least in my opinion. Predicting peaks is not an easy game, especially when there’s a lack of evidence that supports anything like a DRAM drop-off. The latest quarterly result continued to come in hot.
And while some Chinese competitors (think CXMT) could add more supply to the market than expected while algorithmic efficiencies potentially reduce the need for as much memory, there are so many questions that make it hard to know if Micron is a deep-value stock or a trap whose price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple may act as a siren song that draws in investors to sail in and crash against the cold, hard reality that tends to hit cyclical semis.
With Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) being rewarded for its low-CapEx approach, which might win the AI race, as it reportedly tests CXMT chips for China-bound devices, I do understand some of the reason why investors are crowding the exits when it comes to memory chip stocks before anything has a chance to happen. Any way you look at it, it feels like the thesis that the memory market will have tight supply for many, many years is starting to get weaker.
In a way, the imbalance stands to correct itself, especially as firms at the forefront look to expand capacity in a more aggressive manner. Sure, it’d be nice to think that a memory chip glut would happen at some point in the future, especially if you’re sick of paying the “AI tax” on new devices. In any case, manufacturing expansion isn’t going to flood the market with new supply overnight.
It takes years, and the big question is not whether AI demand will continue to outpace it but whether efficiencies will allow AI demand to soar without requiring a proportional amount of memory.
What’s the real signal to buy Micron? Jevons’ Paradox suggests that would just pave the way for even more memory demand. And that makes it oh so difficult to know what’s next. Is efficiency the fix to the memory demand issues or something that makes supply even tighter that memory makers just can’t keep up?
In my humble opinion, there are too many uncertainties here to tell if Micron’s single-digit P/E is the real deal or a trap. Indeed, a 6.3 times forward P/E seems too good to be true. But the better signal, at least in my view, doesn’t lie with the multiple; it’s with the smart money buying experienced in recent quarters (most notably in Q1).
There are too many big-name managers who have been initiating or adding to an existing position in Micron. And while it’s impossible to know their holding period, I do think it speaks to the potentially asymmetric risk/reward potential to be had, especially now that Micron is going for a 25% discount to its peak. In short, the risk level is ridiculous, but the rewards profile might have the potential to be even more ridiculous.
Memory and storage stocks are selling off sharply Monday morning as the broader NASDAQ 100 rises and falls. SanDisk (NASDAQ:SNDK | SNDK Price Prediction) stock is down 12% to $1,270, while Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) shares are off 5% to $871.
Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) stock is down 7% to $483, and SK Hynix (OTC:SKHY) ADRs are down 6% to $145 after giving back an earlier Monday gain ahead of the company’s Q2 2026 report tomorrow after the U.S. close. The coordinated selloff spans NAND and DRAM names alike, signaling a sector-wide reaction rather than a single-stock story.
The Roundhill Memory ETF (NASDAQ:DRAM) is down 4% to $51, reflecting the coordinated hit across memory names on an otherwise up market day. The ETF’s decline highlights how concentrated the selling is within the memory theme.
The trigger is a blockbuster Shanghai IPO that has revived long-running fears of Chinese memory competition. That anxiety is landing on top of enormous year to date (YTD) gains, giving today’s action the look of both fresh news and profit-taking after a historic run.
CXMT IPO Sparks Competition Fears The catalyst is China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), which soared more than 500% in its Shanghai STAR Market debut to become mainland China’s most valuable company at approximately $540 billion in market cap. The offering raised between $8.6 billion and $9.8 billion.
CXMT is the world’s fourth-largest DRAM maker at 8% share, trailing Samsung at 36%, SK Hynix at 29%, and Micron at 24%. New Chinese supply could eventually pressure DRAM and NAND pricing, which has expanded gross margins across the incumbents throughout 2026.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is reportedly testing CXMT’s DRAM chips, adding weight to the concern that Chinese memory could reach top-tier customers sooner than bulls had assumed. Analysts note that CXMT remains constrained by U.S. export controls on advanced chipmaking tools and is unlikely to ease the near-term memory shortage.
Two political headwinds may also cap CXMT’s near-term reach. The company sits on the Pentagon’s list of firms with alleged military ties, and some U.S. lawmakers have signaled interest in restricting American purchases of its chips.
Profit-Taking Meets a Massive YTD Run Today’s move lands on top of extraordinary YTD gains. SanDisk stock had climbed 505% YTD heading into today, while Micron shares were up 223% and Western Digital stock had gained 202%.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
SanDisk’s rally has been fueled by a fundamental transformation. The company posted fiscal Q3 2026 revenue of $5.95 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $23.41, with a 78.4% gross margin. SanDisk CEO David Goeckeler called it a “fundamental inflection point” for the business.
Micron’s fiscal Q3 2026 revenue landed at $41.46 billion, up 345.7% year over year (YoY), with non-GAAP EPS of $25.11. The company guided Q4 2026 revenue to $50 billion, underscoring the pricing power that new Chinese supply could eventually erode.
ETF Concentration Amplifies the Swing The Roundhill Memory ETF’s 4% decline underscores how concentrated this move is. Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron together account for 72% of the fund’s net assets, making the ETF a narrow single-theme vehicle that magnifies swings across the memory cohort.
SK Hynix shares are particularly sensitive today. The U.S. ADR trades at a premium to the Seoul-listed common stock, which amplifies both rallies and pullbacks. With the Q2 report due July 28 after the U.S. close, positioning into results is layering more volatility on top of the latest competition news.
What to Watch The bulls have counterweights. South Korea unveiled a $950 billion AI initiative package this past Saturday involving Samsung, SK Group, and U.S. tech partners. Research desks at Morgan Stanley and Mizuho have characterized the recent memory weakness as a buying opportunity rather than the start of a downturn.
The bear case for the incumbents is straightforward. With margins at record levels and share prices up multiples of their January levels, the setup for disappointment is asymmetric if new Chinese supply ramps faster than U.S. export controls allow. Investors may want to keep their position sizes modest, including in the DRAM memory ETF, where concentration risk runs high.
The immediate catalyst is the Korean memory/storage giant SK Hynix’s Q2 report tomorrow after the close, which could reset sentiment for the entire memory cohort. Also, Micron’s next earnings report is scheduled for September 28. Investors can watch for whether today’s selling stabilizes into Monday’s close and whether the accompanying commentary on 2027 DRAM supply reinforces or challenges the competitive threat narrative.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Micron Technology didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
HomeIndustriesCXMT had a strong public debut in Shanghai, and now investors are weighing the prospect of a manufacturing breakthrough that could make China’s chip industry more competitiveJuly 27, 2026, 12:17 p.m. ET
There’s a new hot memory company on the block, and the shares of more established players are losing some luster.
Despite a blockbuster debut for China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies CN:688825, which saw its stock pop 466% in Shanghai on its first trading day, U.S.-listed memory stocks are taking a sharp turn lower.
Blue Chip Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU – Free Report) by 109.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,997 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,563 shares during the period. Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings in Micron Technology were worth $1,012,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Micron Technology by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,318 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $532,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Micron Technology by 21.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,528 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 628 shares during the last quarter. United Bank acquired a new position in shares of Micron Technology during the 2nd quarter worth about $236,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its stake in Micron Technology by 67.9% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 16,984 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,093,000 after purchasing an additional 6,867 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 5.6% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 405,545 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $49,987,000 after buying an additional 21,619 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.84% of the company’s stock.
Key Micron Technology News Here are the key news stories impacting Micron Technology this week:
Positive Sentiment: Micron remains a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending, with bullish coverage highlighting rising demand for HBM, DRAM and NAND as memory intensity increases in next-generation AI systems. Micron Is A Strong Buy Again Because Of Kimi K3 Positive Sentiment: Micron’s HBM4 ramp-up and faster yield gains could support revenue and margin growth, reinforcing its position in the AI memory race. Micron Boosts HBM4 Ramp-Up: Will It Help MU Lead the AI Memory Race? Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators continue to point to strong long-term fundamentals, but this support is being offset by near-term volatility in the chip trade. Micron Stock Price Stalls Below $1,000 – Here’s Why Analysts Aren’t Worried Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks are sliding broadly as investors lock in gains after a huge 2026 rally, with valuation concerns and leveraged-position unwinding hitting the group. Semiconductor Crossroads: Healthy Consolidation or Deeper Repricing? Negative Sentiment: Chip stocks, including Micron, are also being pressured by weakness in Korean memory names and concern over Chinese memory developments, adding to the selloff in U.S. memory shares. Why Micron and other major chip stocks are falling — even as the rest of tech holds up Analyst Ratings Changes MU has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Micron Technology in a report on Monday, July 20th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Micron Technology from $950.00 to $1,500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $535.00 to $1,625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Micron Technology from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Micron Technology from $1,200.00 to $1,500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,268.93.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on MU
Micron Technology Price Performance Shares of NASDAQ:MU opened at $920.95 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.98, a current ratio of 3.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $966.27 and its 200-day moving average is $624.74. Micron Technology, Inc. has a twelve month low of $103.38 and a twelve month high of $1,255.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.85 and a beta of 2.14.
Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 24th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $25.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $21.39 by $3.72. The company had revenue of $41.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.91 billion. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 71.13% and a net margin of 55.91%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 345.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.91 earnings per share. Micron Technology has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 30.000-32.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 72.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Micron Technology Dividend Announcement The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 6th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. Micron Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 1.36%.
Insider Activity In related news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,083.94, for a total value of $43,357,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 85,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,933,763.78. This represents a 31.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven J. Gomo sold 2,000 shares of Micron Technology stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $787.03, for a total transaction of $1,574,060.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,139 shares in the company, valued at $13,488,907.17. This trade represents a 10.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 163,300 shares of company stock valued at $152,667,204 over the last ninety days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Micron Technology Profile (Free Report)
Micron Technology, Inc is a global semiconductor company that designs and manufactures memory and storage solutions. Its product portfolio includes dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), NAND flash memory, solid-state drives (SSDs), memory modules and embedded memory solutions for a wide range of computing and electronic devices. Micron supplies components used in data centers, enterprise and cloud infrastructure, client computing, mobile devices, automotive systems and industrial applications, and also markets consumer-facing products under the Crucial brand.
Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Boise, Idaho, Micron has grown into an international manufacturer with research, development and production facilities across multiple regions.
Featured Articles Five stocks we like better than Micron Technology RTX and Lockheed Earnings: Can Strong Guidance Reset the Defense Trade? These 4 Earnings Reports Expose the Market’s Growing Economic Divide Broadcom May Be the Biggest Winner From Alphabet’s Earnings Volatility Is Back and These 3 Market Tollbooths Are Best Positioned to Profit
Receive News & Ratings for Micron Technology Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Micron Technology and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Despite AI stocks being a huge driver of the market, that doesn't mean that their valuations are also through the roof. In fact, valuations for AI stocks generally remain reasonable, while there are certainly bargains to be found.
Let's look at three leading AI stocks that you can buy today while they are in the bargain bin.
Image source: Getty Images.
Nvidia With a forward price-to-earnings P/E ratio of just 16 times fiscal 2028 (ending January 2028) analyst estimates, Nvidia's (NVDA -1.01%) stock is cheap. It has been one of the best growth stories in the market over the past few years, and with AI infrastructure spending set to continue to soar, its rapid growth should continue.
Over the past three years, Nvidia has seen its revenue climb more than tenfold, which is remarkable for a company of its size. The growth is led by its graphics processing units (GPUs), which have become the primary chip used in training AI models. Nvidia's biggest strength, though, is that it has been able to see where the market is going before others.
Today's Change
(
-1.01
%) $
-2.10
Current Price
$
206.66
The company smartly seeded its CUDA software platform into places doing early AI research, making it the platform on which nearly all early AI code was written, creating a wide moat for itself in the process. It later acquired next-generation networking company Mellanox. Mellanox was a company ahead of its time, and today Nvidia's networking portfolio is one of its fastest-growing and most important businesses. Meanwhile, earlier this year, it "acquired" Groq, which looks like it could be a big differentiator for it in the inference market. This type of forward thinking is one very good reason for buying the stock while it's cheap.
Micron Technology Trading at a forward P/E of 6 times fiscal 2027 (ending August 2027) analyst estimates, Micron Technology's (MU -7.24%) valuation is minuscule. The reason for this is that the memory market has historically been very cyclical, with large boom-and-bust cycles. However, the AI infrastructure build-out has created a memory supercycle, with the big players starting to lock in long-term contracts for the first time.
Micron is one of the big three DRAM (dynamic random access memory) makers, and it derives around 75% of its revenue from DRAM and the rest from NAND (flash). The DRAM market is being driven by surging demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM), a type of DRAM that gets packaged with GPUs and other AI chips to optimize their performance. With the big three players in the space all focused on HBM and trying to meet surging demand, all DRAM prices have surged, leading to skyrocketing revenue and huge margin gains for Micron.
Today's Change
(
-7.24
%) $
-71.69
Current Price
$
918.52
Importantly, the supply-demand dynamics driving the market look like they will be here for quite some time. Memory makers need to compete with foundries for the same EUV (extreme ultraviolet lithography) machines, which are needed to manufacture both advanced logic chips, like GPUs, and HBM. And there is only one company that makes these machines, ASML, which limits the ability to rapidly increase capacity. Meanwhile, HBM also requires three times the wafer capacity of ordinary DRAM, further hampering supply. And that's why Micron looks like a bargain buy at these levels.
Amazon E-commerce giant Amazon (AMZN -0.70%) is a pioneer in cloud computing, which is helping drive much of today's AI infrastructure spending. However, investors have become wary of the companies doing the spending, which has left Amazon trading at one of its lowest historical valuations (forward P/E of 23 times 2027 analyst estimates) and well below some of its brick-and-mortar peers.
Today's Change
(
-0.70
%) $
-1.64
Current Price
$
232.02
However, this is a company seeing accelerating cloud computing growth and having a history of making big investments that pay off. Meanwhile, its custom chip business helps give it a cost advantage. Plus, it has formed major partnerships with leading frontier model companies Anthropic and OpenAI.
On top of that, its e-commerce business has been hitting on all cylinders, with strong operating leverage from its internal investments in robotics and AI. A market leader in two huge segments, this is a stock you want to own for the long term and scoop up while it is still cheap.
The broader market rally coincided with a major development in the global memory-chip industry that could reshape long-term competitive dynamics.
ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), China’s leading DRAM maker, made a blockbuster stock market debut that underscores Beijing’s push to build a domestic memory champion.
While the listing highlights rising competition in commodity memory, analysts believe Micron remains well positioned in the faster-growing AI memory market.
IPO Puts China’s Memory Ambitions In FocusCXMT raised 57.92 billion yuan, or $8.55 billion, after pricing its IPO at 8.66 yuan per share. The stock surged more than 531% to about 54.60 yuan, valuing the DRAM maker at roughly 3.68 trillion yuan and making it China’s most valuable listed company.
The debut highlighted strong investor appetite for Chinese-made memory chips as AI infrastructure demand grows. Morningstar analysts expect CXMT’s global DRAM share to rise to 10% in 2026, supported by AI spending and demand for domestic memory supply.
CXMT could pressure Micron in commodity DRAM, but analysts say the bigger AI memory opportunity still favors Micron’s high-bandwidth memory business.
AI Memory Still Favors MicronMilk Road AI analyst Melvin said concerns over Apple potentially sourcing cheaper DRAM from CXMT may be overstated for Micron.
He said CXMT could pressure commodity DRAM suppliers in products such as phones and PCs, but argued Micron has shifted more of its focus toward premium high-bandwidth memory used in AI data centers.
Melvin said CXMT remains at least one generation behind in HBM and does not yet pose a meaningful threat in the AI memory market.
Technical AnalysisMU is in a clear long-term uptrend, up 727.82% over the past 12 months, and it remains well above its longer-term trend gauges (trading 34.2% above the 100-day SMA and 89.6% above the 200-day SMA).
The shorter-term picture is more mixed, with the stock trading 2.4% below the 20-day SMA and 0.4% below the 50-day SMA—suggesting the recent pullback is still being worked off.
Analyst Consensus: The stock carries a Buy rating with an average price forecast of $1548.86. Recent analyst moves include:
Keybanc: Overweight (Raises Forecast to $1750.00) (July 14) Cantor Fitzgerald: Overweight (Raises Forecast to $2000.00) (June 29) Cantor Fitzgerald: Overweight (Maintains Forecast to $1500.00) (June 25) Top ETF ExposureSignificance: Because MU carries such a heavy weight in these funds, any significant inflows or outflows for these ETFs will likely force automatic buying or selling of the stock.
Price ActionMU Stock Price Activity: Micron Technology shares were up 3.21% at $950.54 during premarket trading on Monday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Photo via Shutterstock
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
If you bought shares of Sandisk (SNDK -10.79%), Micron (MU -7.24%), and Intel (INTC -8.02%) at the start of 2026, you're a happy investor. The stocks are all up an incredible amount, with Intel coming in last place with 148% gains, Micron in the middle at about 220%, and Sandisk leading the way with about a 500% increase. But there could be more upside in store for some of these stocks.
So, which one makes for the best buy now? Let's find out.
Image source: Getty Images.
Sandisk and Micron are benefiting from a similar story Both Sandisk and Micron are memory chip companies and operate similar businesses. Micron makes both NAND and DRAM memory, with NAND being used for long-term information storage while DRAM memory is used inside computing units for rapid memory access. Sandisk focuses solely on NAND memory and also manufactures several types of storage devices, like solid-state drives (SSDs).
Today's Change
(
-7.24
%) $
-71.69
Current Price
$
918.52
There is a huge demand for both NAND and DRAM memory thanks to the AI data-center build-out, and memory chips have quickly become the No. 1 bottleneck. This has caused prices to skyrocket during the past year, leading to huge revenue and profit growth for Sandisk and Micron.
MU Revenue (Quarterly YoY Growth) data by YCharts
This effect isn't expected to conclude any time soon, as Micron has told investors it expects the tightness in the memory chip industry to persist beyond 2027. That bodes well for both of these stocks and indicates that they could continue climbing throughout the rest of this year and well into next.
So, just because these two are the top performers of the trio doesn't mean that they can't go higher.
Intel's turnaround is complete, according to the market Intel is a completely different investment from the other two. Intel is undergoing a turnaround, as its process and foundry business have been on a major decline since 2022.
INTC Revenue (TTM) data by YCharts
There has been speculation for years that Intel is shutting its foundry business, at least until the U.S. government stepped in with an investment, and then Nvidia (NVDA -1.01%) followed suit and invested as well. This brought new capital to the foundry business, and it has found a new client: Apple. According to a post from President Donald Trump, Apple has agreed to use some of Intel's foundry capacity, bringing a much-needed client to Intel. Apple is a major, recognizable name in the sector, and if it believes Intel can produce what it wants, then other clients may be attracted to Intel's foundry services as well.
However, with the stock rebounding throughout the year, it's clear that the market has bought into the hype despite the business still struggling. This makes me a bit cautious, as Intel still has to execute on its turnaround even if the stock is already priced as if it has occurred. This is part of the reason Intel trades for 82 times forward earnings, which prices in some execution risk.
Because Intel's stock has had a major move without much business success, I think it's easily in third place among this trio. As for Micron and Sandisk, it's splitting hairs. Both of these companies are benefiting from huge tailwinds and will likely crush the market during the next few years. Between the two, I'll take Sandisk, only because Wall Street analysts project 154% revenue growth for fiscal year 2027 (ending in June). They still expect a rapid 84% growth rate for Micron, but it just isn't enough to compete with Sandisk.
Sandisk and Micron are still solid picks right now, but I'm hesitant to recommend Intel, as it has moved a ton without a lot to show for it.
Micron faces a longer-term competitive challenge after CXMT’s Shanghai debut gave the Chinese memory-chip maker access to billions that could fund a rapid expansion in conventional DRAM.
MU closed at $920.95 on Friday, down 6.9%, before CXMT started trading on Monday.
CXMT opened 470% higher at 49.50 yuan, against an IPO price of 8.66 yuan, briefly lifting its valuation to about 3.3 trillion yuan, or $487 billion.
The company raised 57.92 billion yuan, or $8.6 billion, in Asia’s largest IPO of 2026.
The opening gain matters less for Micron than the capital behind it.
CXMT can use the proceeds to build factories, develop DRAM processes and support Beijing’s campaign to reduce China’s dependence on overseas memory suppliers.
Nomura initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a 116-yuan target based on 2028 earnings.
“The global supply of memory is unlikely to ease in the coming years,” analyst Donnie Teng wrote in a note.
The bank expects CXMT’s share of DRAM production to increase from about 10% to roughly 18% by the end of 2028.
Such growth would bring the Chinese producer closer to Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron, while giving it greater influence over industry supply.
CXMT’s first-day valuation does not make it Micron’s technological equal.
The more important signal is that public-market funding and government support could sustain several years of investment, even if memory prices and investment returns weaken during the next downturn.
SemiAnalysis estimates that CXMT’s production capacity could reach about 350,000 wafer starts per month by the end of 2026, only modestly below Micron’s estimated 385,000.
Ranked by wafer capacity, that would place CXMT close to becoming the industry’s third-largest supplier.
Most of CXMT’s output is directed towards conventional DDR and LPDDR memory used in smartphones, personal computers and mainstream servers.
These are markets where additional supply can influence prices more quickly than in technically demanding AI products.
That creates Micron’s hidden risk, as CXMT does not need to match Micron’s leading processes immediately.
Producing enough acceptable memory to replace imports in China and compete in price-sensitive markets could still pressure global commodity-DRAM prices, market share and margins.
Yet CXMT is not currently a low-cost rival.
SemiAnalysis estimates that its DDR5 cost per bit remains more than 30% above Micron, Samsung and SK Hynix. It said recent margin gains reflected unusually strong selling prices more than a structural improvement in manufacturing efficiency.
Micron remains better protected in high-bandwidth memory and data-centre DRAM, where qualification barriers, manufacturing complexity and customer relationships are stronger.
The company has said HBM4E development is progressing, with volume production expected in calendar 2027.
CXMT remains a small HBM supplier.
SemiAnalysis estimates that it held about 1% of global HBM wafer supply in 2025, but projects that share could reach 12% by 2028 as China channels more capacity towards domestic AI infrastructure.
Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore recently described memory as becoming “increasingly THE bottleneck” for AI and agentic-computing systems.
That shortage supports Micron’s near-term pricing, earnings and capacity utilisation, making an immediate derailment of its AI-led cycle unlikely.
