As it could not be otherwise, the companies that are benefiting the most from the RAM crisis They are precisely those that have the product and, therefore, they are the ones that set the price. Micron is one of those few companies that is profiting from the excessive demand of this key component for any gadget, a demand caused by the AI fever. The figures from its latest financial report have even exceeded expectations. Although there are some nuances to comment on. Let’s go to trouble.
What has happened? Micron just published the results of its second fiscal quarter with numbers that have left analysts speechless. Its revenues have almost tripled those of the previous year, reaching $23.9 billion, well above Wall Street estimateswho expected about 20,000 million.
Earnings per share have skyrocketed to $12.20, compared to the $9 projected. And for the third quarter, the company anticipates revenue of approximately $33.5 billion, almost ten points above what the market expected.
Those who share the benefit. Artificial intelligence has changed everything in the memory market. The data centers that power AI models require massive amounts of high-performance memory, and the available supply cannot meet that demand. Micron, together with Samsung and SK Hynix, forms the trio that controls practically the entire supply world of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, which are basically one of the key components to run the long-awaited NVIDIA GPUs.
Those who buy at any price. Micron’s own CEO, Sanjay Mehrotra, counted to CNBC that the company can only cover between 50% and two-thirds of what its main clients need. Put another way: there is a queue of buyers willing to pay whatever it takes, and Micron simply doesn’t have RAM for everyone. According to SK Group President Chey Tae-won, the global shortage could last another four to five years due to structural bottlenecks in semiconductor production.
What’s coming Aware that what is happening now will not last forever, Micron is investing at a speed that has made the market nervous. The company plans to exceed $25 billion in capital spending in 2026 alone, and has already announced that in 2027 that number will rise another $10 billion. Among other operations, it has closed purchasing a plant of Taiwanese Powerchip for $1.8 billion, which will begin producing DRAM wafers in the second half of 2027.
The company has also started mass shipments of its new HBM4 memory of 12 layers, which will be directed to the new Vera Rubin platform from NVIDIA. Precisely how much NVIDIA will depend on Micron for this new generation compared to its rivals is the big open question for all investors.
Everything is going well for them, but the shares are going down. There has been a bit of a cold reaction in the stock market, as shares have fallen around 5% in the session after the results, despite the fact that the numbers have beaten all forecasts. The reason is the same thing that happened with NVIDIA a few weeks ago: When expectations are very high, even good results can disappoint.
From Goldman Sachs they counted that the value could move in a narrow range in the short term after a “very solid quarter with guidance well above consensus, in a context of already elevated expectations.” That has not prevented banks like Wells Fargo or Barclays from updating their upward forecasts to $550 and $670 per share, respectively.
The big photo. Micron has accumulated a revaluation of more than 60% so far this year, and has become the most profitable value on the PHLX (Philadelphia Semiconductor Index). Mehrotra affirms that Micron is “the invisible layer that powers AI today.” But it seems that the company is slowly losing that cloak of invisibility.
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