Key Highlights

  • Shares are trading at $974.28, up 5.15% in Thursday's session.
  • Intel's (NASDAQ:INTC) CEO warned that the global memory chip shortage could worsen into 2027, with DRAM prices already up more than 500% amid AI-driven demand.
  • The move comes just ahead of Micron's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings, scheduled for September 30.
  • Micron posted an 85% gross Margin and $41.46 billion in Revenue in its prior quarter.

Intel's Shortage Warning Lifts Memory Stocks Broadly

Micron (NASDAQ:MU) shares surged in Thursday's session after Intel's Chief Executive Officer Lip-Bu Tan warned that the global memory chip shortage could worsen into 2027, with DRAM prices already up more than 500% amid AI-driven demand. Micron is one of only three major DRAM manufacturers worldwide, producing DRAM, NAND flash, NOR flash, and high-bandwidth memory products under its Micron and Crucial brands.

The warning lifted memory chip stocks broadly, with South Korea's SK hynix (NASDAQ:SKHY) also gaining roughly 5% in sympathy.

Earnings and Customer Agreements Are the Next Test

The move comes just ahead of Micron's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings, scheduled for September 30, with investors weighing whether persistently tight Supply and $22 billion in strategic customer agreements will translate into another quarter of Blowout margins after the company posted an 85% gross margin and $41.46 billion in revenue in its prior quarter.

Some Analysts Caution the Rally Already Prices in the Upcycle

Even so, some analysts caution that Micron's massive year-to-date rally already prices in much of the AI memory upcycle, a tension that is likely to persist regardless of how the upcoming Earnings report lands.