Memory used to be the most 'boring and brutal' business in chips — sold as a commodity, with prices swinging so hard the industry lost money in cycles. Then AI changed everything, especially a special kind of memory called HBM that let a smaller company, SK Hynix, topple the old champion and pushed the whole industry into a 'supercycle' that could run through 2028.
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Why is Memory — DRAM, NAND & HBM moving?
Q2 2026
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AI Memory Boom: Prices Double, Micron Wins Nvidia, Risks Emerge
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AI demand drives DRAM price surge AI demand pushed DRAM contract prices to double, with Apple warning that price hikes are unavoidable. This shows how AI is straining memory supply and lifting prices across the industry.
It captures the core demand shock that defined the period.
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Micron's AI wins and US investment Micron won an Nvidia HBM4 supplier role, locked in $100B of AI memory contracts, reported record $41.5B revenue at 85% gross margin, and committed $200B to US fabs.
It highlights the major company-specific developments that boosted sentiment.
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SK Hynix and South Korea ramp up SK Hynix shipped HBM4E samples and sought a $29B US listing, while South Korea launched a $1T+ chip investment plan. These moves signal strong government and corporate backing for memory growth.
It shows the broader ecosystem support and competitive moves in the memory space.
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Risks: slowdown and Chinese competition SK Hynix slowed HBM4 expansion to focus on higher-margin conventional DRAM, triggering a selloff. Apple's talks with blacklisted Chinese suppliers CXMT and YMTC could undercut Micron's pricing power, and massive capacity additions threaten eventual oversupply.
It provides the necessary counterweight, showing that not all news was positive and highlighting emerging risks.
Latest
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Micron's blowout quarter confirms memory shortage runs through 2028
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Micron's record quarter and guidance show the shortage is nowhere near over Micron reported quarterly revenue of $54.23 billion (up 379%) and guided next quarter to $61.5 billion, far above expectations. Management said there is no line of sight to when supply catches demand, and that 2027 and 2028 will be even tighter than 2026. That locks in strong pricing and profits for DRAM, NAND and HBM makers.
Micron's results and guidance are the period's biggest confirmation that the memory shortage and pricing boom continue.
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AI buyers keep locking in memory years ahead, and new demand sources appear Micron now has 26 multi-year take-or-pay contracts covering over 35% of revenue through 2030, with customer deposits up to $32 billion. BofA raised its AI data center market forecast to $2.2 trillion, and Micron flagged humanoid robots as a future memory driver. Buyers committing years ahead supports HBM and DRAM demand.
Long-term contracts and new demand sources show the boom is backed by real commitments, not just spot buying.
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DRAM and NAND prices keep climbing, with HBM margins above 80% Baird raised its Micron target to $1,520, citing DRAM contract prices up 20% in Q3 and another 10% in Q4, NAND up 20% then 5-10%, and HBM gross margins above 80% in 2027. BofA channel checks showed DRAM up 20-30% quarter over quarter. Rising prices directly lift memory makers' profits.
Pricing is the core driver of memory theme earnings, and multiple analysts confirm it is still rising.
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Labor strike risk at Micron's Taiwan plants threatens already-tight supply Micron's Taiwan union is moving toward a strike vote over bonus demands, after negotiations broke down. Taiwan is a key base for Micron's DRAM and HBM production, so any disruption would hit supply when the market is already sold out. This is a real risk to the memory theme, though talks continue.
A potential supply disruption is the main counterweight to the positive shortage story this period.
Q3 2026
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AI memory boom hits records, but cycle-top fears and China risks grow
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Record profits and cash flow Samsung's profit jumped 19-fold, SK Hynix raised $26.5B in a record US listing, and Micron posted 379% revenue growth with 86% margins and $18.3B free cash flow.
Shows the scale of the boom in hard numbers.
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Sold-out supply through 2027 Output is sold out through 2027, shortages may run to 2030, and $100B+ in take-or-pay contracts lock in high-margin demand; HBM margins exceed 80%.
Explains why the boom is expected to last, not just a one-quarter spike.
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China competition and efficiency threat China's CXMT (huge IPO, DRAM/NAND advances) and YMTC threaten pricing power, while DeepSeek's V4.1-Flash cuts HBM use 75%, showing efficiency could trim demand.
Highlights the main forces that could undercut the boom.
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Cycle-top fears and supply risks Investors fear a cycle top—Micron fell ~32% from its peak despite records—amid debt-funded AI spending, tariffs, massive new capacity, and a potential Micron Taiwan strike threatening supply.
Shows the market's worry that the good times may be peaking.
News & notes movingMemory — DRAM, NAND & HBM
United States
Memory — DRAM, NAND & HBM▲3impact 4
Micron Adds $43 Billion in Quarterly Sales as AI Demand Drives Blowout Earnings
Micron beat sales and profit forecasts for its latest quarter, driven by voracious demand from the AI boom, with guidance also strong except for margin comments on the earnings call that may have caused a muted market reaction. The memory chipmaker added about $43 billion in sales during the most recent quarter compared to the year-ago quarter, and more than $13 billion in sales from the quarter reported three months ago. Operating margins exploded in all business segments, exceeding 80% in some segments. Micron executives signaled tight capacity and higher prices for its products until 2028, with D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria saying expectations for tightening supply-demand conditions through both 2027 and 2028 meaningfully extend the industry's runway for strong pricing and earnings growth. The stock trades on a single-digit forward P/E ratio.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron beat sales and profit forecasts with blowout earnings and strong guidance driven by AI demand.
MU · Pricing · Positive Executives signaled tight capacity and higher prices for its products until 2028, extending strong pricing and earnings growth.
Sandisk Data-Center Revenue Hits $2.98 Billion as AI Storage Boom Lifts Profits
Sandisk Corporation reported $8.97 billion in fiscal fourth-quarter revenue, with $2.98 billion coming from data centers, roughly 33% of the quarter's total, while edge revenue was $5.43 billion and consumer revenue $556 million. Data-center revenue rose from $213 million a year earlier, and its full-year contribution was $5.15 billion out of total sales of $20.25 billion, or about 25%. The company earned $6.90 billion in the quarter and $11.43 billion in fiscal 2026, and reported an 84.6% GAAP gross margin while guiding to an 83% to 84.9% GAAP range for the next quarter. On August 13, Sandisk said eight structured customer agreements covered roughly half of fiscal 2027 bits and two-thirds of fiscal 2028 bits, with minimum financial guarantees, and management's fiscal 2028 to 2030 model targets about 80% adjusted gross margin and 50% adjusted free-cash-flow margin. Short interest stood at 5,618,213 shares on September 15, about 3.8% of float and 0.56 days to cover, and Insider Monkey's hedge fund database counted 128 hedge-fund holders in Q2 2026, up from 114 in Q1.
Cloud & Digital Infrastructure › Enterprise Data Storage Systems ▲Demand
SNDK · Capital · Positive Sandisk reported blowout fiscal Q4/FY2026 results with $8.97B revenue, $6.90B quarterly earnings, and 84.6% GAAP gross margin.
SNDK · Demand · Positive Data-center revenue surged to $2.98B from $213M a year earlier, and eight structured customer agreements cover roughly half of FY2027 bits.
Micron's Low P/E Hinges on Whether Memory Profits Hold
Micron Technology's fiscal 2026 results leave investors weighing how much of its memory-shortage profit can erode before the stock stops looking cheap. At its September 30 close of $1,065.11, the company carried a roughly $1.2 trillion equity value against $84.97 billion of fiscal 2026 net income, about 14 times annual earnings. Micron reported $133.19 billion of annual revenue, with its final quarter generating $54.23 billion and an 86.8% GAAP gross margin, and guidance for the next quarter calls for $61.5 billion of revenue, plus or minus $1.5 billion, at an approximately 85.95% GAAP gross margin. Management said 26 take-or-pay agreements cover over 35% of estimated revenue through 2030, with most revenue under a defined pricing framework carrying floor-and-ceiling bands, and it expects margins at floor prices above prior cycle peaks. Micron produced $89.68 billion of fiscal 2026 operating cash flow and $62.31 billion of adjusted free cash flow after $27.37 billion of net capital expenditure, an approximately 5.2% cash yield on the $1.2 trillion equity value.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron's fiscal 2026 results show $84.97B net income, 86.8% gross margin, and $62.31B adjusted free cash flow, supporting its low ~14x P/E valuation.
Micron CEO flags self-driving cars and humanoid robots as next memory demand driver
Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said on the company's Q4 earnings call that physical AI, starting with self-driving cars and expanding to humanoid robots, could become a significant driver of memory and storage demand by the end of this decade. In its Q4 report on Wednesday, Micron reported earnings per share of $33.42, up 1,002% from $3.03 in the same quarter last year, while revenue climbed 379% to $54.23 billion from $11.31 billion in Q4 2025. Mehrotra said memory content in level 4 and higher autonomous vehicles typically exceeds 200 gigabytes, with storage reaching multiple terabytes, each more than an order of magnitude greater than in today's level two plus and level three semi-autonomous vehicles. He added that humanoid robots will have similar memory and storage requirements, which could serve as an additional revenue opportunity. Companies working on humanoid robots include Tesla, Figure, Hyundai's Boston Dynamics, Unitree Robotics, and Agility Robotics, though Reuters reported only 7,000 humanoid robots were sold globally in 2025 for industrial and professional services.
Robotics & Physical AI › Autonomous Vehicles & Robotaxi ▲Demand
Artificial Intelligence › HBM & AI Memory ▲Demand
Robotics & Physical AI › Humanoid Robots ▲Demand
MU · Capital · Positive Micron reported Q4 EPS of $33.42, up 1,002% year over year, and revenue up 379% to $54.23 billion.
MU · Demand · Positive Micron CEO flags self-driving cars and humanoid robots as a significant future driver of memory and storage demand, an additional revenue opportunity.
AI and Energy Drive Market Leadership in First Nine Months of 2026
Technology and energy emerged as the two most consequential sector stories of the first nine months of 2026, with the S&P 500 gaining 11.4% and the Nasdaq Composite up 15.6% even as the 10-year Treasury yield moved above 5% and Brent crude gained about 40% in the third quarter. According to the Zacks Earnings Trend report dated Sept. 30, the tech sector is expected to post 42.1% earnings growth in the third quarter of 2026, with semiconductor earnings projected to surge 85.5% on 62.8% revenue growth; that growth would moderate to 29.6% excluding semiconductors and to 20.6% excluding NVIDIA, Micron and Alphabet. NVIDIA's fiscal second-quarter 2027 revenues rose 106% year over year, with Data Center revenues jumping 117%, while Micron reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2026 revenue growth of 379.3% year over year, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6.33%, with EPS of $33.42 topping the estimate by 5.73%. On the energy side, Middle East disruptions pushed Brent above $100 per barrel during September, and Zacks expects Energy earnings to surge 111.8% in the third quarter, the sector's most pronounced upgrade to its earnings outlook since the quarter began. Chevron reported $12 billion in second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings, its highest quarterly profit in six years, with upstream earnings rising 200% to $8.2 billion and U.S. production reaching a record nearly 2.1 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, while Exxon Mobil reported $14.7 billion in second-quarter adjusted earnings, $23.6 billion in operating cash flow and $17.2 billion in free cash flow.
CVX · Capital · Positive Chevron reported $12B in Q2 2026 adjusted earnings, its highest quarterly profit in six years, with upstream earnings up 200%.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron reported fiscal Q4 2026 revenue growth of 379.3% YoY, beating estimates, with EPS of $33.42 topping the consensus.
NVDA · Capital · Positive NVIDIA's fiscal Q2 2027 revenues rose 106% YoY with Data Center revenues up 117%.
XOM · Capital · Positive Exxon Mobil reported $14.7B in Q2 2026 adjusted earnings, $23.6B operating cash flow and $17.2B free cash flow.
Google Raises Pixel 10a Price by $100 to $599 on Memory Cost Pressure
Google has raised the price of its seven-month-old Pixel 10a smartphone by $100 to $599 for the 128GB model, another sign of how rising memory costs are pushing up prices across the consumer electronics industry. The Pixel 10a launched in March at $499 for the 128GB model and $599 for the 256GB version, and Google's U.S. website now lists the phones at $599 and $699, respectively. The increase was first spotted on Google's online store in Japan and later appeared on its U.S. website, according to 9to5Google. The move comes amid a persistent memory-chip shortage that has pushed up costs across the consumer electronics industry, with Samsung this week raising prices on most of its Galaxy S26 smartphones by $100, while Apple raised prices on its iPhone 18 lineup and also increased prices on some older models. Google had already raised prices across its Pixel 11 lineup by $100 when it introduced the phones in August, according to Bloomberg, offsetting some of the higher starting prices by including more storage in the base configurations. The Pixel 10a had been discounted to $424 last month, and Walmart still appeared to be selling the phone for $499, although supplies were limited.
GOOG · Pricing · Positive Google raised Pixel 10a prices by $100 to $599, passing on higher memory costs to consumers.
005930.KO · Pricing · Negative Samsung raised prices on most Galaxy S26 smartphones by $100 amid the memory-chip shortage, a competitive pricing move.
AAPL · Pricing · Negative Apple raised prices on its iPhone 18 lineup and some older models due to the same memory-cost pressure, a competitive pricing dynamic.
Micron Earnings, Soft Jobs Data and Bitcoin Rally Lift Bull Market
Micron Technology delivered another outstanding earnings report Wednesday evening, with revenue, earnings and margins all surging and management offering another strong outlook as demand continues to overwhelm available supply. According to UBS estimates, memory represented roughly 14% of total AI capital spending in 2025, a share expected to jump to 37% in 2026 and 64% by 2027. The U.S. economy added just 29,000 jobs in September, while July was revised down to a 10,000-job loss and August was revised lower to 133,000, with July and August payroll growth reduced by another 60,000 jobs combined; St. Louis Fed estimates put the breakeven rate needed to keep unemployment stable somewhere around 15,000 to 87,000 jobs per month. Bitcoin has gained roughly 35% over the past three months compared with about 10% for the Nasdaq 100, reversing its earlier summer underperformance. The Nasdaq is printing fresh all-time highs while the S&P 500 knocks on the door of record highs, as softer labor data pulls Treasury yields lower and eases pressure on the Fed to raise rates again.
Micron Beats Estimates With $33.42 EPS, Guides Stronger for Fiscal 2027
Micron reported quarterly earnings per share of $33.42, beating Wall Street expectations by 5.73% and marking its 14th consecutive quarter of topping Zacks Consensus Analyst Estimates, with record profits and triple-digit revenue and earnings growth driven by AI demand. CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said fiscal 2027 will be even stronger, and the company's Q1 2027 guidance did not disappoint. Micron shares have surged over 1,300% in the past five years yet trade at a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.61x and a market cap of just $1 trillion, even as the company is expected to generate more quarterly profit next quarter than NVIDIA did in the first quarter of 2026, when NVIDIA earned $40 billion in quarterly profit at a $4.8 trillion market cap. Management said Micron holds 26 multi-year take-or-pay agreements covering more than 35% of expected revenue through 2030, with customer financial commitments rising to $32 billion from $22 billion last quarter, mostly in cash deposits. Micron also confirmed the DRAM supply and demand imbalance remains, saying it has no line of sight to when supply and demand will return to balance, and expects humanoid robot production and physical AI to add a significant layer of memory and storage demand by the end of this decade.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron beat EPS estimates with $33.42 and guided stronger for fiscal 2027, a blowout earnings event.
MU · Demand · Positive 26 multi-year take-or-pay agreements cover over 35% of expected revenue through 2030, with customer commitments rising to $32 billion.
Micron Reports Record Fiscal 2026 Results on AI-Driven Memory Demand
Micron Technology reported record financial results for its fiscal year 2026, crediting rising AI-driven demand and effective operational execution. The company said memory chips are becoming increasingly critical as AI evolves into what it calls "Super Intelligence," and pointed to increased technology investments and strategic customer agreements as the basis for its outlook. Micron last closed at $1,097.39, up 3%. In other chip trading, GlobalWafers rose 9.7% to NT$1,190.00, while VeriSilicon Microelectronics (Shanghai) fell 11.3% to CN¥171.68. NVIDIA ended at $230.86, up 1.1% near its 52-week high, after announcing a collaboration with Delta to enhance autonomous driving solutions using its AI technology; Advanced Micro Devices settled at $615.73, up 0.6%, and Broadcom ended at $343.64, down 2.1%.
Micron Set to Out-Earn All Magnificent Seven in Quarterly Operating Income
Micron is poised to out-earn every Magnificent Seven company in operating income in the current quarter, a milestone that would surprise most investors in the mega-cap tech names. The memory-chip maker easily beat sales and profit forecasts for its latest quarter on Wednesday, driven by voracious AI demand, and added about $43 billion in sales versus the year-ago quarter, with operating margins exploding across all business segments. Micron's market cap of roughly $1.1 trillion is the smallest of the group that also includes Microsoft, Google, Apple, Amazon, Meta, Tesla and Nvidia. Guidance was also strong, except for margin comments on the earnings call, and the stock is up 285% year to date.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron beat sales and profit forecasts with operating margins exploding across all segments, poised to out-earn the Magnificent Seven in quarterly operating income.
MU · Demand · Positive Results driven by voracious AI demand, adding about $43 billion in sales versus the year-ago quarter.
Teradyne Launches Magnum E2 Memory Tester as Memory Revenue Hits Record $212 Million
Teradyne has launched the Magnum E2, a next-generation high-speed memory test system built on its Near-DUT Test architecture, supporting advanced DRAM and flash interfaces including LPDDR6, DDR6, GDDR7 and NAND flash. The platform offers higher parallelism, improved signal integrity and support for NRZ, PAM3 and PAM4 signaling, and combines memory and logic testing on a single platform. The launch expands Teradyne's memory test portfolio, led by its Magnum platforms, as the company competes with KLA and Cohu in the semiconductor test-equipment market. In the second quarter of 2026, Teradyne's memory revenues reached a record $212 million, the third consecutive quarter above $200 million, with memory book-to-bill exceeding 2. Management expects the 2026 memory test TAM to be more than 40% higher than 2025 and expects memory revenues to grow in the second half compared to the first half. KLA reported record fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 revenues of $3.66 billion, up 15% year over year and 7% sequentially, while Cohu is extending its Neon inspection platform across HBM3, HBM4 and HBM4E production.
Semiconductors › Advanced Packaging & Test (OSAT) Technology
TER · Capital · Positive Teradyne's memory revenues hit a record $212M in Q2 2026, third straight quarter above $200M, with book-to-bill above 2 and expected H2 growth.
TER · Technology · Positive Teradyne launched the Magnum E2 next-generation high-speed memory test system supporting LPDDR6, DDR6, GDDR7 and NAND flash.
COHU · Competition · Neutral Mentioned only as a competitor extending its Neon inspection platform across HBM3/HBM4/HBM4E, no impact on Cohu stated.
KLAC · Capital · Neutral Reported record Q4 fiscal 2026 revenues of $3.66B, up 15% YoY, but only as context alongside Teradyne's memory test news.
Micron Q4 Earnings Surge 11-Fold as Wall Street Closes Higher
Micron Technology reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 non-GAAP earnings of $33.42 per share, up more than 11-fold from $3.03 a year earlier and beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5.73%. Revenue surged 379.3% year over year to $54.23 billion, topping consensus by 6.33%, as tight DRAM and NAND conditions lifted pricing and AI demand drove data center growth. Data center SSD revenues approached $10 billion, more than 10 times the year-ago level and more than two-thirds of total NAND revenues. Wall Street closed higher Thursday after a volatile start to October trading, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.04% at 50,926.56, the Nasdaq Composite up 0.04% at 26,871.60, and the S&P 500 up 0.2% at 7,666.45. The rally came as yields on U.S. Treasury Notes retreated from 24-year highs, with the 10-Year yield falling six basis points and the 30-Year four basis points in late trading after hitting 5.344% and 5.636% intraday, respectively.
Cloud & Digital Infrastructure › Enterprise Data Storage Systems ▲Demand
Artificial Intelligence › HBM & AI Memory ▲Demand
MU · Capital · Positive Micron's Q4 non-GAAP EPS surged 11-fold to $33.42 and revenue jumped 379.3% YoY, beating consensus on tight DRAM/NAND pricing and AI data-center demand.
US-10Y.GB · Monetary · Negative The 10-Year Treasury yield fell six basis points from 24-year highs as part of the market backdrop to Micron's earnings-driven rally.
US-30Y.GB · Monetary · Negative The 30-Year Treasury yield dropped four basis points after hitting 5.636% intraday, cited as context for the higher Wall Street close.
Musk Says Tesla Halved Optimus Chip Memory to Scale Production
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Thursday that the company cut memory specifications on its next-generation Optimus robot chips to scale production, after Micron said humanoid robots could require hundreds of gigabytes of memory each. In a post on X, Musk said Tesla cut the AI5 chip's memory in half to 72GB and the AI6 chip's memory by a third to 144GB, calling it the only way to get enough volume for Optimus production and saying it greatly reduces cost. He added the cuts should have a negligible effect on Optimus performance because memory bandwidth is a bigger limiting factor than total memory capacity. On Micron's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings call Wednesday, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said humanoid robots are expected to need more than 200 gigabytes of memory and multiple terabytes of storage per unit, similar to autonomous vehicles, and that physical AI could become a significant driver of memory and storage demand by the end of the decade. Tesla has reportedly placed its first large-scale component order for roughly 5,000 Optimus units and aims to eventually build 1 million units a year.
TSLA · Supply · Neutral Tesla halved AI5 chip memory to 72GB and cut AI6 to 144GB to scale Optimus production and cut cost, a supply/capacity-driven spec change with mixed implications for the robot's performance.
MU · Demand · Positive Micron CEO said humanoid robots could need 200GB+ memory and terabytes of storage each, a significant future driver of memory/storage demand, though Tesla's memory cuts temper the near-term picture.
Micron CFO Says No Line of Sight for End of Memory Shortage
Micron CFO Mark Murphy said there is no line of sight on when memory supply will be sufficient to meet demand, as the company reported blowout fiscal Q4 results driven by the AI buildout. Earnings per share came in at $33.42, up 1,002% from $3.03 in the same quarter last year, while revenue climbed 379% to $54.23 billion from $11.31 billion. CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said on the earnings call that industry demand has strengthened since the last earnings call and that memory and storage supply-demand conditions are expected to be much tighter in fiscal 2027 and 2028 than in 2026, adding that as strong as fiscal 2026 was, fiscal 2027 should be even better. To head off a bust, Micron has signed 26 strategic customer agreements covering more than 35% of its revenue through 2030, most with pricing floors and ceilings. Murphy said Micron is building additional manufacturing capacity, but the facilities will take years to complete and months more to ramp once wafers start rolling off the lines.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron reported blowout fiscal Q4 results with EPS up 1,002% and revenue up 379% driven by the AI buildout.
MU · Demand · Positive Micron signed 26 strategic customer agreements covering over 35% of revenue through 2030, with memory supply-demand conditions expected to be much tighter in fiscal 2027 and 2028.
Micron Posts Record Earnings as Taiwan Union Moves Toward Strike Vote
Micron Technology reported record quarterly results after the close on Wednesday, but a labor dispute at its Taiwan operations is now threatening production at one of its key manufacturing bases. Fourth-quarter revenue came in at $54.23 billion, ahead of the $50.45 billion consensus and nearly five times the $11.32 billion reported a year earlier, while adjusted earnings of $33.42 a share beat estimates of $31.16. For the full fiscal year, revenue reached $133.19 billion against $37.38 billion the prior year, with operating margin at 76% on a non-GAAP basis, and Micron guided first-quarter revenue to $60 billion to $63 billion, well above the $56.77 billion consensus, with earnings of $37.15 to $39.15 a share. Chairman and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra credited AI demand and the company's Strategic Customer Agreements for the record fiscal 2026 results. According to reports, Micron said its roughly 15,000 Taiwan employees would receive the company's largest-ever compensation package for fiscal 2026, worth the equivalent of 35 to 68 months of base salary for production staff, but the Taoyuan union is pushing for a permanent mechanism allocating 15% of operating profit to employee bonuses rather than another one-off payout. Union chairman Lin Che-jui has said the aim is a long-term, transparent system, negotiations broke down on Sept. 21, and the union has announced plans for a strike vote, while Micron has said it remains willing to continue talks and separate mediation with the Taichung union is scheduled for Oct. 22. Taiwan is one of Micron's most important manufacturing bases for DRAM and the high-bandwidth memory used in AI servers, making any disruption a risk for investors at a time when supply is already tight, and a poll on workplace platform Blind found 75% of respondents support the Micron strikers receiving the additional 15%.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron reported record quarterly results with revenue of $54.23B beating consensus and guided Q1 revenue well above estimates.
MU · Supply · Negative A labor dispute at Micron's Taiwan operations is threatening production at a key DRAM and HBM manufacturing base amid already tight supply.
Micron Posts Blowout Quarter as AI Demand Drives Record Sales Growth
Micron delivered a blowout quarter, beating sales and profit forecasts on explosive demand from the AI boom, with guidance also coming in strong except for margin comments on the earnings call that may be causing a muted market reaction. The memory chip maker added about $43 billion in sales in the most recent quarter compared to the year ago quarter, and more than $13 billion in sales from the quarter reported just three months ago, with operating margins exploding in every single business segment both year over year and quarter over quarter. On the earnings call, Micron's CFO said the company expects price increases to moderate eventually, with a better mix of products worked based on technology and product leadership, and that market conditions would remain tight and supportive through 2028. Separately, Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz is stepping down to become co-CEO of the merged Paramount and Warner Bros, a company that has said it may need to cut over $6 billion in costs. BFA's Vivek Arya raised his total addressable market outlook for AI in 2030 to about $2.2 trillion, up from about $1.8 trillion previously, naming Nvidia, Intel, Marvell, Micron and Lam Research among his top picks on the play.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Compute & Accelerator Silicon ▲Demand
MU · Capital · Positive Micron posted a blowout quarter, beating sales and profit forecasts with operating margins exploding in every segment.
MU · Demand · Positive Record sales growth was driven by explosive AI-boom demand for its memory chips, with tight supportive market conditions through 2028.
NVDA · Demand · Positive BofA's Vivek Arya named Nvidia among his top AI picks as he raised his 2030 AI total addressable market outlook to ~$2.2 trillion.
Micron Declares $0.15 Quarterly Dividend, Payable October 29
Micron declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, in line with its previous payout. The dividend is payable October 29 to shareholders of record as of October 14, which is also the ex-dividend date. The declaration accompanies Micron's report of record fiscal fourth quarter and full year 2026 results. Separately, Micron said it expects fiscal first quarter revenue of $61.5B plus or minus $1.5B as it raises fiscal 2027 capital expenditure plans amid tighter 2027-2028 supply-demand conditions, and it signaled demand visibility into 2028 with 75% of fiscal 2027 shipments committed and 35% of sales under supply agreements by 2030.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron declared a $0.15 quarterly dividend in line with its prior payout, alongside record fiscal Q4/full-year 2026 results.
MU · Demand · Positive Micron signaled demand visibility into 2028 with 75% of fiscal 2027 shipments committed and 35% of sales under supply agreements by 2030.
BofA Names Nvidia, Intel, Marvell, Micron and Lam Research Top Q4 Chip Picks
Bank of America named Nvidia, Intel, Marvell, Micron and Lam Research as its top semiconductor picks for the fourth quarter in a note on Thursday. The bank said the fourth and first quarters have historically been the best seasonal periods to own chip stocks, with median outperformance of 300 to 500 basis points against the S&P 500 from 2010 to 2025. BofA cited near-term catalysts for each name: enhanced buybacks and multiple GTC tradeshow events for Nvidia, agentic CPU strength and foundry win anticipation for Intel, the start of buybacks from December 9 for Micron, an Analyst Day on October 6 and XPU ramp for Marvell, and share gain potential across memory and logic for Lam Research. The bank raised its forecast for the AI data center market to $2.2 trillion by 2030 from $1.8 trillion, implying 40% annual growth, and said adoption of AI agents, competition between AI labs and limited chip supply should keep spending strong. BofA sees combined capital spending by major U.S. and Chinese cloud providers reaching about $1 trillion this year and $1.4 trillion in 2027, rising to $2 trillion to $3 trillion by 2030, and said valuations remain compelling with the SOX index trading at 21 times forward earnings, 12% below its median since ChatGPT launched.
Micron lifts revenue outlook on AI memory demand; Nike set to report
Micron unveiled an upbeat quarterly revenue forecast that topped expectations, sending its shares higher in extended-hours trading. The Idaho-based chipmaker said customers had increased their commitments under its long-term supply agreements to $32 billion, up from $22 billion reported in June, as businesses race to secure memory chips for AI data centers. Micron's stock price has more than tripled so far this year, giving the company a $1 trillion market capitalization. Separately, Nike was due to release its latest results after the closing bell, with investors watching for progress in CEO Elliott Hill's turnaround strategy; Nike shares have slumped by more than 44% this year and the company was removed from the S&P 100 this month. Tencent signed a $7 billion lease deal with Oracle for access to about 100,000 advanced artificial intelligence chips, the Financial Times reported, in what would be Tencent's largest ever overseas lease agreement.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Compute & Accelerator Silicon ▲Demand
Artificial Intelligence › HBM & AI Memory ▲Demand
MU · Demand · Positive Customers raised commitments under long-term supply agreements to $32B from $22B on AI memory demand, lifting Micron's revenue outlook.
0700.HK · Supply · Positive Tencent signed its largest ever overseas lease, a $7B deal with Oracle, to secure about 100,000 advanced AI chips.
ORCL · Demand · Positive Oracle signed a $7B lease deal with Tencent for access to about 100,000 advanced AI chips.
NKE · · Neutral Nike is only noted as due to report results, with no substantive development given.
US Stocks in Focus on Tech Shares and ISM Manufacturing Index
In the US stock market on October 1, the focus will be on the movement of tech shares and the US September ISM manufacturing index. In the previous day's trading on September 30, the New York Dow fell for a third straight session, closing down 443.87 dollars at 50,906.05 dollars. The roughly 19-year high in the US 10-year Treasury yield weighed on the market, and rising crude oil futures prices amid difficult US-Iran negotiations heightened inflation concerns, leaving selling dominant, particularly in defensive shares. Meanwhile, some major tech shares were bought, and the Nasdaq Composite Index ended higher. On October 1, the US September ISM manufacturing index will be released at 10 a.m. local time, with the market forecast at 55.0, a slight improvement from the previous 54.6. Micron Technology's earnings for the June-August quarter, announced after the previous day's close, were strong, with both revenue and profit greatly exceeding market expectations on the back of expanding demand for artificial intelligence, and attention will be on whether this spreads a sense of reassurance about buying across tech shares today. Before the market opens, Accenture's earnings for the June-August quarter will also be released, with its fiscal 2027 outlook and progress in AI-related demand drawing attention.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron's June-August quarter revenue and profit greatly exceeded market expectations on expanding AI demand.
US-10Y.GB · Monetary · Positive The roughly 19-year high in the US 10-year Treasury yield weighed on the market; the article frames the elevated yield as the driver, implying upward pressure on yields.
ACN · Capital · Neutral Accenture's June-August earnings, fiscal 2027 outlook, and AI-related demand progress are due before the open, but results are not yet known.
Japanese Chip Stocks Surge as Micron Outlook Lifts AI Trade
Japanese chipmakers rallied on Thursday after Micron Technology's stronger-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter results and outlook renewed optimism over AI-related semiconductor demand. Advantest jumped nearly 8% by 04:16 GMT, Lasertec surged 10%, TDK rose 5.5%, Taiyo Yuden climbed 8.3%, Murata Mfg advanced 7.4%, Kioxia Holdings rose 4.6%, Tokyo Electron added 6%, and Rohm gained 4%. Micron reported quarterly revenue of $54.23 billion and forecast first-quarter revenue of $61.5 billion, above market expectations. The company also said long-term supply agreements had risen to $32 billion from $22 billion in June, while demand for high-bandwidth memory used in AI data centres continued to outstrip available capacity. The rally helped lift Japan's Nikkei 2.8% to 68,606.81 points, with gains concentrated in AI and semiconductor-related shares.
HANA jumps 5% as KGI Securities recommends Buy with 63 baht target, eyes 44% profit growth in 2027
Shares of Hana Microelectronics Public Company Limited, or HANA, rose 4.90% to 53.50 baht on trading value of 1.60493 billion baht after KGI Securities (Thailand) Public Company Limited said in an analysis that its earnings outlook is on a recovery path. It expects third-quarter 2026 sales of about 173 million US dollars, up 10% from a year earlier and 5% from the previous quarter, driven by smartphone-related sales, which account for roughly 20% of total sales. Orders from the PMS business are expected to recover to about 4 million US dollars, while orders from Phononic are expected to rise to around 3 million US dollars. As a result, sales for the first nine months of 2026 are seen at approximately 494 million US dollars, up 5% from a year earlier, or 73% of the full-year sales estimate. Gross margin is expected to rise to 11.0% in the third quarter of 2026, up 5 percentage points from a year earlier and 0.3 percentage points from the previous quarter, helped by a smaller loss at PMS after production was shifted to a manufacturer in China, along with higher orders from Phononic and a weaker baht. Gross margin for the first nine months of 2026 is expected at 10.4%, up 1.9 percentage points from a year earlier and close to the full-year assumption of 10.6%. KGI Securities maintained its Buy rating on HANA with an end-2027 target price of 63 baht, based on a price-to-earnings ratio of 40 times, and expects core business profit to grow another 44% in 2027, supported by its entry into the AI supply chain and the start of a second mass production round of cooling solutions for HBM and GPU devices through the partnership between HANA and Phononic.
HANA.BK · Capital · Positive KGI Securities maintains Buy rating with 63 baht target, citing recovering earnings and 44% core profit growth in 2027.
Phononic · Demand · Positive Phononic orders are expected to rise to about $3 million, and its HBM/GPU cooling solutions partnership with HANA supports growth.
KGI.BK · · Neutral KGI Securities is the analyst issuing the Buy rating and target, but the news is about HANA, not KGI's own business.
South Korea's September exports surge 83.5% to a record 120.9 billion dollars
South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources announced that the country's exports jumped 83.5% year on year in September, reaching a record high of 120.9 billion dollars, driven by chip exports that surpassed 60 billion dollars for the first time. Imports rose 26% to 71.09 billion dollars, giving South Korea a record trade surplus of 49.85 billion dollars in September. In the semiconductor sector, a key pillar, exports soared 263% to 60.3 billion dollars, lifted by higher shipment volumes and rising prices amid sustained demand for memory chips. Petroleum product exports surged 72% to 7.22 billion dollars, and petrochemical products rose 5.1% to 3.95 billion dollars. Cosmetics exports jumped 31.4% to 1.51 billion dollars on growing demand from China, the United States and the European Union. Automobile exports, however, fell 5.5% to 6.05 billion dollars, weighed down by fewer working days during the Chuseok holiday and a decline in used-car exports. By country, exports to China surged 123% to 26 billion dollars, topping 20 billion dollars for a fourth consecutive month, while exports to the United States soared 137% to 24.33 billion dollars. Exports to Southeast Asian countries rose 92.6% to 21.29 billion dollars, and exports to the European Union increased 20.9% to 8.65 billion dollars.
Micron Technology Posts Massive Gains in Q4 with Revenue Up 4.8x and Net Profit Up 12x
Micron Technology, a major maker of memory semiconductors for AI servers, reported on September 30 its fiscal 2026 fourth-quarter results for the June-August period, with revenue up 4.8 times year-on-year to 54.229 billion dollars, net profit up about 12 times to 37.701 billion dollars, and adjusted diluted earnings per share up about 11 times to 33.42 dollars, beating market expectations. Growing demand for AI servers and rising memory prices boosted results, with the cloud memory business segment revenue up 3.6 times year-on-year to 16.283 billion dollars and the core data center business segment up about 11 times to 18.002 billion dollars. For the fiscal 2027 first quarter covering September to November 2026, the company forecast revenue with a midpoint of 61.5 billion dollars and adjusted earnings per share with a midpoint of 38.15 dollars. It plans capital expenditure of about 25 billion dollars in fiscal 2027, expanding DRAM and NAND production capacity in Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and elsewhere. CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said memory and storage supply and demand will tighten further in fiscal 2027 and fiscal 2028.
Micron Earnings Beat Lifts U.S. Stock Futures as AI Trade Reaffirmed
U.S. stock index futures rose on Wednesday evening after Micron Technology posted stronger-than-expected fiscal fourth quarter earnings and guidance, reinforcing confidence in the artificial intelligence trade. S&P 500 Futures rose 0.36% to 7,743.25 points, Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.4% to 30,822.50 points, and Dow Jones Futures rose 0.3% to 51,430.0 points. Micron reported adjusted earnings of $33.42 per share, above expectations of $31.16, and guided current quarter EPS at $38.15, plus or minus $1.00, above street estimates of $36.02. Micron shares rose as much as 1% in aftermarket trade but pared gains to trade flat after its earnings call, as the company flagged slightly softer gross margins in the current quarter and forecast higher operating expenses for fiscal 2027, while saying it will increase shareholder returns in December. Caution over soaring yields and key upcoming labor market data stifled bigger gains, with the 10-year Treasury benchmark hitting a fresh 19-year high and remaining well above 5.2%.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Compute & Accelerator Silicon ▲Demand
Artificial Intelligence › HBM & AI Memory ▲Demand
MU · Capital · Positive Micron posted stronger-than-expected fiscal Q4 earnings and above-consensus guidance, though it flagged softer gross margins and higher opex.
US-10Y.GB · Monetary · Negative The 10-year Treasury yield hit a fresh 19-year high above 5.2%, pressuring bond prices.
SK hynix Weighs US IPO of Solidigm Unit, Shares Fall 5%
SK hynix is weighing a US IPO of its US-based memory subsidiary Solidigm, according to recent company discussions. The potential listing would introduce a new public entity into SK hynix's group structure, which already includes multiple cross-holdings, and some investors are questioning how a separate Solidigm float might affect capital allocation priorities across the wider SK hynix group. The share price fell 5% after the IPO talk surfaced, pointing to investor focus on governance worries rather than Solidigm's growth angle, since a deeper pyramid structure can make it harder for shareholders to see how value from the US unit ultimately flows back to SK hynix. The key marker from here is whether SK hynix formally files for a US Solidigm IPO, which reports suggest could be as soon as next year; any filing would spell out ownership stakes, capital raised and use of proceeds.
Semiconductors › Memory — DRAM, NAND & HBM Capital
000660.KO · Capital · Negative SK hynix is weighing a US IPO of Solidigm, raising investor governance and capital-allocation concerns that sent shares down 5%.
Micron Faces 7.75% Earnings Test After 261% AI Rally
Micron Technology reports fiscal fourth-quarter earnings after the market closes Wednesday, with the stock up 261% this year and 560% over the past year, pushing its market value past $1 trillion. Analysts expect fourth-quarter sales of $50.75 billion, up from $11.31 billion a year earlier and above Micron's fiscal third-quarter record of $41.46 billion, with profits projected at $31.45 per share versus $3.03 last year. Micron has beaten Wall Street sales and EPS predictions for 12 and 10 quarters, respectively, and its fiscal third-quarter gross margin was 84.9%, with the company guiding to 86% in the fourth quarter and UBS forecasting 87.6%. Multiyear high-bandwidth memory take-or-pay contracts have earned Micron $100 billion, with 16 key client agreements worth over $22 billion, and most of its HBM capacity is booked through 2027 and 2028. The options market implies Micron shares could move 7.75% in either direction by week's end, with management's comments on memory pricing, HBM demand, profits and the duration of tight supply the biggest driver.
Lynx Equity goes long on Micron ahead of Q4 earnings, sees $1,325 target as a floor
Lynx Equity Strategies is positioning long on Micron Technology ahead of the company's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report, due today after the market close, with analyst KC Rajkumar forecasting revenue of $525 billion in calendar year 2028 at 80% gross margins. Rajkumar argues the Street has missed that Micron benefits from Meta's Muse agentic workloads, as AI demand shifts from token generation on GPU and XPU hardware to longer-running agentic tasks on CPUs, moving the memory center of gravity from GPU-attached HBM to CPU-attached lpDDR5x. He also contends that Samsung has chosen to prioritize elevated profitability over market share, keeping supply tight even as data-center demand visibility extends into 2029 and 2030, which reduces the risk of a supply glut in 2028 and 2029. Lynx maintains its $1,325 price target on Micron but says its conviction has strengthened and that significant upside remains, modeling calendar 2027 revenue of roughly $350 billion at an 85% gross margin and about $250 in earnings per share, then calendar 2028 revenue of $525 billion at an 80% gross margin and $325 in EPS. The firm reversed its stance from three months ago, when it stayed on the sidelines going into Micron's May quarter earnings call, and now expects management to extend demand visibility and confirm that the supply and demand imbalance persists into 2028 and beyond, which Rajkumar calls likely to be a catalyst for the stock to make fresh highs.
MU · Capital · Positive Lynx Equity maintains its $1,325 price target and strengthened long conviction ahead of Micron's Q4 earnings, citing upside and fresh highs.
Lynx Equity Strategies · Capital · Neutral Lynx Equity Strategies is the analyst firm issuing the long call and $1,325 target; it is the source of the view, not a company being impacted.
005930.KO · Competition · Neutral Samsung is cited as prioritizing profitability over market share, keeping memory supply tight and reducing glut risk — a competitive dynamic affecting Micron, not a Samsung-specific event.
Micron Earnings Loom Over Chip ETFs as Buyback Window Nears
Micron is set to report quarterly earnings after the close of trading, a result that could ripple through memory and semiconductor exchange-traded funds. Consensus estimates call for EPS growth of 951%, revenue to rise 355%, and a gross margin of 86.2%, according to the 8:30 panel. Micron technically would be able to restart stock buybacks as of December 9th under Chips Act restrictions, though analysts are not necessarily expecting an announcement today. The stock is up 273% year to date and 550% over the past year, and analysts hold 57 buy ratings, four holds, and zero sells. Bank of America's Vivek Arya noted channel checks showing DRAM products up 20 to 30% quarter over quarter and NAND pricing up 15%, with prices expected to keep rising in the fourth quarter. The Roundhill DRAM ETF, launched in April, is up 120% since then, while the broader VanEck SMH semiconductor ETF has gone sideways after recovering from summer declines.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron is the subject: blowout consensus EPS/revenue/margin estimates and looming earnings, plus a possible buyback restart under Chips Act rules.
Micron Earnings, PCE Inflation Data and ADP Jobs Report Headline Wednesday's Watch List
Micron is set to report earnings on Wednesday, September 30, with investors' expectations running high on the AI boom as surging demand for memory chips has driven prices up and put the company on track to beat revenue estimates. Also on deck is fresh inflation data from the August personal consumption expenditures report, with economists forecasting both headline and core PCE to rise on a month-over-month basis. Finally, the ADP September employment report is expected to show 74,000 jobs added for the month, compared with 38,000 in August, offering more insight into the health of the job market ahead of Friday's full jobs report.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Compute & Accelerator Silicon ▲Demand
MU · Demand · Positive Surging demand for memory chips has driven prices up and put Micron on track to beat revenue estimates ahead of its earnings report.
ADP · · Neutral ADP September employment report is expected to show 74,000 jobs added, but the article only previews the data release without a directional read for ADP.
Netlist Files ITC Patent Complaint Against Micron, Google, Nvidia, Broadcom
Netlist has filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission accusing Micron Technology and several major technology companies of infringing patents covering high-bandwidth memory used in artificial intelligence computing. In the complaint, first filed under seal on Friday, Netlist said Micron's HBM3E, HBM4, and HBM4E memory chips infringe two of its patents. The complaint also names Google, Nvidia, and Broadcom, saying their graphics processors, servers, and other products incorporate Micron memory that uses the patented technology. Netlist is asking the ITC to block imports of Micron's memory chips as well as products from the three technology companies that contain the chips, and it is also seeking cease-and-desist orders.
Artificial Intelligence › HBM & AI Memory ▼Competition
Artificial Intelligence › AI Compute & Accelerator Silicon ▼Competition
0K6M.LSE · Regulation · Positive Netlist is the complainant, filing an ITC patent action against Micron, Google, Nvidia, and Broadcom over HBM patents.
MU · Regulation · Negative Netlist filed an ITC patent complaint alleging Micron's HBM3E, HBM4, and HBM4E chips infringe its patents and seeking to block imports.
AVGO · Regulation · Negative Netlist's ITC complaint names Broadcom, seeking to block imports of its products that incorporate allegedly infringing Micron HBM.
GOOG · Regulation · Negative Netlist's ITC complaint names Google, seeking to block imports of its servers/products containing allegedly infringing Micron memory.
NVDA · Regulation · Negative Netlist's ITC complaint names Nvidia, seeking to block imports of its GPUs that incorporate allegedly infringing Micron memory.
Memory stocks face pricing test ahead of Micron earnings
Memory stocks are facing a fresh test as pricing momentum cools ahead of Micron Technology's earnings on Wednesday. Sara Awad of Tech Contrarians said the performance of memory players without significant high-bandwidth memory exposure could offer a better read on non-AI memory demand and pricing, which will be critical to Micron's gross-margin outlook. Among the names Awad highlighted, WT Micro reported August sales growth of only 8%, while Nanya Technology posted record August sales of NT$44.7B but monthly growth slowed to 2% from 49% in July, and Macronix International recorded a roughly 5% monthly increase in August, a slowdown from July. Awad noted that DRAM average selling prices could rise only 13%-18% in Q3, according to TrendForce, compared with roughly 50%-60% growth in Q2, while additional Chinese supply is coming online, with CXMT expected to reach roughly 20,000 wafer starts per month by year-end. Micron guided for an 86% gross margin last quarter after reporting 84.6%, and Awad said the market could react negatively if the company fails to guide for another increase.
MU · Pricing · Negative DRAM ASP growth cooling to 13-18% in Q3 from 50-60% in Q2 and rising CXMT supply threaten Micron's gross-margin outlook ahead of earnings.
2337.TW · Demand · Negative Macronix's August sales growth slowed to ~5% monthly from July, signaling weakening non-AI memory demand.
2408.TW · Demand · Negative Nanya posted record August sales but monthly growth decelerated sharply to 2% from 49% in July, indicating cooling memory demand.
688825.CG · Supply · Negative CXMT's additional Chinese DRAM supply, expected to reach ~20,000 wafer starts per month by year-end, adds capacity pressure on memory pricing.
Applied Materials Partners With KIOXIA at $5 Billion EPIC Center for AI Memory
Applied Materials has entered a major R&D partnership with KIOXIA focused on next generation memory for AI workloads, based at Applied Materials' new US$5b EPIC Center. The collaboration targets memory cell structures, multi chip stacking and advanced packaging, with both companies working to improve manufacturability and density of future memory technologies tailored for AI focused chip architectures. The EPIC Center alliance with KIOXIA is only one piece of what is changing around Applied Materials' AI memory ambitions. Applied Materials builds the tools, software, and services that chipmakers use to manufacture semiconductors at scale, and the KIOXIA partnership plugs directly into its role supplying core production gear for memory and AI focused devices across the US, Asia, and Europe. A key data point to monitor is how quickly EPIC Center projects with KIOXIA convert into production tools and service contracts once the facility becomes operational this year.
285A.JP · Technology · Positive KIOXIA is partnering with Applied Materials on next-generation AI memory R&D at the EPIC Center to improve memory density and manufacturability.
AMAT · Technology · Positive Applied Materials entered a major R&D partnership with KIOXIA at its $5B EPIC Center targeting next-gen AI memory cell structures, stacking and advanced packaging.
CCET benefits from AI storage and SSD-driven orders, expands new plant
Cal-Comp Electronics (Thailand) Public Company Limited, or CCET, is benefiting from rising data storage demand driven by global data center investment, particularly in the Storage business across both HDD and SSD, as well as hardware products related to data centers and processing systems. The company has invested in expanding SSD production capacity and has a new plant that has already begun operations, which helps increase its readiness to accommodate shifts in product mix. Data from the Investors Association indicates that CCET has consumer SSD, data center SSD, and AI server SSD in its business plan. Meanwhile, Thailand is gaining an opportunity to attract a new wave of foreign direct investment from the expansion of the semiconductor, PCB, and advanced electronics industries, which will help enlarge the country's electronics ecosystem. Key issues to monitor going forward are order growth, the ramp-up of the new plant, an increasing share of SSD and value-added products, and maintaining margins in line with revenue expansion.
9105.TW · Demand · Positive CCET is benefiting from rising data storage demand driven by global data center investment, with orders across HDD, SSD, and AI server SSD.
9105.TW · Supply · Positive CCET has invested in expanding SSD production capacity and a new plant has begun operations to accommodate product-mix shifts.
New Apple CEO John Ternus Reportedly Plans Layoffs as Memory Chip Costs Rise
New Apple CEO John Ternus is reportedly planning layoffs and canceling projects, according to a Bloomberg report. The cuts would range from small-scale numbers within large teams, and could help offset pressure from rising memory chip costs. Apple issued cautious revenue guidance for the current quarter in late July, largely because it cannot source enough memory chips to meet demand, and services revenue fell quarter over quarter in June for the first time since 2022. On his final earnings call, former CEO Tim Cook said Apple reluctantly raised prices because the company is in what he characterized as a 100-year flood on memory pricing, with exponential increases in memory prices. The memory market has tightened as demand for high-bandwidth memory and advanced dynamic random-access memory used in AI servers outpaces supply, with SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics, and Micron largely sold out of premium AI memory capacity through much of 2026. Experts expect memory supply to remain constrained into 2027, and layoffs under Ternus could also prevent Apple from making more significant price hikes in 2027 should the shortage continue.
AAPL · Supply · Negative Apple faces rising memory chip costs and cannot source enough memory chips, forcing layoffs and project cancellations under new CEO Ternus.
000660.KO · Demand · Positive SK Hynix is largely sold out of premium AI memory capacity through much of 2026 as memory demand outpaces supply.
005930.KO · Demand · Positive Samsung Electronics is largely sold out of premium AI memory capacity through much of 2026 amid tight memory supply.
Bernstein Cuts SK Hynix Price Target to 2.7 Million Won, Keeps Outperform
Bernstein lowered its price target on SK Hynix to 2.7 million won from 3.3 million won while keeping an Outperform rating, citing more conservative assumptions on the progress and pricing of high-bandwidth memory. Analyst Mark Li said Samsung Electronics is set to gain HBM share, keeping his 440,000 won target on that stock, and wrote that the firm still prefers Samsung among the incumbent suppliers. Bernstein cut its 2027 HBM price assumptions after Korean export data for July and August showed strong signals for Samsung but weaker ones from SK Hynix's HBM production site, and continued reports of HBM4 supply difficulties led Li to push back slightly the shift from the current HBM3E generation; he now expects HBM to remain less profitable than conventional DRAM in 2027. The broader memory outlook stays firm, with Bernstein expecting conventional memory prices to rise by the mid-teens to 20% in the third quarter and by a high single digit in the fourth, shortages persisting into 2027, and prices normalizing in 2028 as supplier gross margins ease from a peak of about 90% to the high 70s. The firm kept its Outperform ratings on Micron and SanDisk, with targets of $1,300 and $3,000.
Artificial Intelligence › HBM & AI Memory ▼Pricing
000660.KO · Capital · Negative Bernstein cut SK Hynix's price target to 2.7 million won from 3.3 million won on more conservative HBM progress and pricing assumptions.
005930.KO · Competition · Positive Bernstein said Samsung is set to gain HBM share and it prefers Samsung among incumbent suppliers, keeping its 440,000 won target.
MU · Capital · Positive Bernstein kept its Outperform rating and $1,300 target on Micron amid a firm memory outlook with rising conventional memory prices.
SNDK · Capital · Positive Bernstein maintained its Outperform rating and $3,000 target on SanDisk as memory prices are expected to rise.
Micron to report Q4 earnings as memory boom drives record growth
Micron will report its fourth quarter earnings after the bell on Wednesday, giving investors a fresh read on the memory and AI market. Wall Street expects earnings per share of $31.83, up 950% from the $3.03 reported in the year-ago quarter, on revenue of $51.49 billion, up 355% from $11.31 billion. Within that total, DRAM is expected to generate $38.22 billion in sales and NAND storage chips $12.29 billion. The memory giant's third quarter earnings per share jumped 1,214% year over year and revenue rose 345%, while its stock has climbed 279% year to date and 587% over the past 12 months. Micron is also investing up to $10 billion over the next 10 years to build a long-horizon premier research institution in Boise, Idaho, even as rising memory and storage costs push device makers such as Apple to raise prices, including a $100 increase on its iPhone 18 Pro line versus the iPhone 17 Pro.
MU · Capital · Positive Micron is the subject of the article, with Q4 earnings expected to show EPS up 950% and revenue up 355% year over year on the memory boom.
Micron Earnings, U.S. Payrolls and RBA Rate Decision Headline Q4's First Week
Micron Technology reports its latest quarterly earnings after the bell on Wednesday, the next test for an AI trade that has shown signs of fatigue in recent months. The $1.2-trillion memory chip maker, a key supplier to Nvidia's AI processors, has seen its shares rise over +280% year-to-date, but they fell more than -6% during the quarter while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index shed an even steeper -14%. Investors will also get September U.S. nonfarm payrolls on Friday, expected to rise by +100K jobs with unemployment at 4.2%, along with the PCE price index on Wednesday and Eurozone inflation data on Friday. The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to hike its policy rate by a quarter point on Tuesday, taking it to a 15-year high of 4.6%. Futures pricing suggests a roughly 50/50 chance the Federal Reserve will again hike by a quarter point in October.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Compute & Accelerator Silicon Demand
MU · Capital · Neutral Micron's quarterly earnings report is the headline event, framed as a test for the AI trade after shares fell over 6% in the quarter.
AU-10Y.GB · Monetary · Positive RBA is expected to hike its policy rate by a quarter point to a 15-year high of 4.6%, pushing Australian bond yields up.
HKTDC raises Hong Kong 2026 export forecast to 42-47% on AI demand tailwind
The Hong Kong Trade Development Council, or HKTDC, on Monday, September 28, raised its forecast for Hong Kong's merchandise export growth in 2026 to 42-47%, after global demand for artificial intelligence-related technology proved far stronger than expected. Meanwhile, the HKTDC's exporter confidence index for the third quarter of 2026, released the same day, showed the current performance index at 51.8 and the expectation index at 51.3, reflecting that exporter sentiment remains broadly sound even as geopolitical uncertainty persists. Bruce Pang, HKTDC's director of research, said Hong Kong's strong export growth this year has been driven mainly by the rapid acceleration of global demand for AI-related goods and infrastructure, with demand for semiconductors, memory chips, computer components, telecommunications equipment and other advanced electronics expanding much faster than expected, providing significant support to Hong Kong's exports.
NVIDIA Boosts Buyback Authorization by $1 Billion, Fulfilling Jim Cramer's Wish
NVIDIA Corporation increased its share repurchase authorization by $1 billion on Monday, a move CNBC host Jim Cramer said he had pushed for throughout 2026. Cramer argued the buyback could change the stock's trajectory if the company is active in the market every day, comparing it to the repurchases Apple executed under former CFO Luca Maestri. The announcement comes as NVIDIA guides 70% fiscal year 2028 revenue growth after growing revenue 106% annually in the second quarter, though higher memory prices and tight semiconductor manufacturing capacity remain risks. The company guided third quarter gross margin of 75%, a full point lower than Q2's 74%, and said fiscal Q4 gross margin could range between 71% and 72% before recovering. NVIDIA's long term debt jumped to $32.3 billion in the second quarter from $7.5 billion a year earlier, and the stock trades at a forward P/E ratio of 24.9, below Intel's 63.29 and AMD's 39.53.
