TLDR
- Micron stock jumped over 14% on Friday after a sector-wide AI chipmaker rally
- DA Davidson issued a Street-high price target of $1,000 on Micron
- Micron’s high-bandwidth memory capacity is already sold out through 2026
- DRAM prices soared 57% in April vs Q1 averages; NAND prices rose 65–70%
- Bernstein flagged short-term demand concerns but maintains a Buy rating
Micron (MU) stock surged more than 14% on Friday, recovering sharply after a 3% drop on Thursday triggered by a Bernstein note flagging trouble in the computer memory spot market.
The bounce came as investors piled back into AI-related chipmakers, with Micron riding a broader sector rally.
DA Davidson added fuel to the move, issuing a Street-high price target of $1,000 on Micron. The firm cited Micron’s structural position in the AI memory supercycle as the key driver.
Micron’s high-bandwidth memory capacity is already sold out through 2026. The company also recently launched a record 245TB SSD, underlining its push into high-demand AI infrastructure.
Bernstein’s Thursday note had spooked the market by warning of a shortage in both DRAM and NAND flash memory. The concern was that prices had climbed so high that OEMs and module houses were being forced to cut purchases.
That kind of demand pullback could cause price growth to “decelerate notably” into Q2 2026, Bernstein said, potentially slowing Micron’s near-term profit momentum.
Price Surge Tells a Different Story
Despite the caution, the price data is hard to ignore. DRAM prices jumped 57% in April compared to Q1 averages. NAND prices rose between 65% and 70% over the same period.
Bernstein still holds a Buy rating on Micron and is expected to raise its price target, which currently sits at $510, given its bullish tone on the company’s outlook.
Wall Street currently expects Micron to earn close to $19 per share in the May quarter. Sales are forecast to grow 260% to $33.5 billion.
Those numbers, Bernstein noted, should hold up even if some buyers pull back in Q2, as those with the budget to spend will keep buying.
Supply Crunch Driving the Story
The core of the Micron story right now is supply tightness. Nvidia, AMD, and other AI chipmakers are pushing out chips faster than memory supply can keep up.
Customers are competing for available inventory, bidding prices higher in the process. That dynamic puts Micron in a strong position despite the short-term noise.
Micron’s year-to-date price performance stands at 126.66%, reflecting how much the market has re-rated the stock as AI infrastructure spending has accelerated.
The stock’s technical sentiment is currently flagged as a Buy, with average daily trading volume of around 42 million.
Friday’s move brought the stock to $735.44, up $88.81 on the day, with a session high of $735.68.
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