MU, SNDK Extend Slide For A Second Day As Memory Rally Fizzles: Micron Results Next Week To Test AI Demand

Investors are weighing lofty memory valuations, rising competition and sustained AI-driven demand ahead of Micron’s key earnings report.

• Micron and SanDisk extended their declines as investors locked in gains following sharp multi-week rallies.
• Michael Burry’s larger Micron short position and rising HBM competition from Samsung added pressure to memory stocks.
• Micron’s Sept. 30 results will offer a key read on memory pricing, HBM demand and the durability of AI-driven demand.

Shares of Micron Technology and SanDisk Corp. dropped 1.5% to 2% in early premarket trading Thursday, extending their declines for a second day as the recent memory rally fizzled again, with investors chalking up bets ahead of Micron’s all-important earnings report next week. 

Earlier this week, short-seller Michael Burry revealed large short positions in Micron and other AI-linked stocks, arguing that memory-chip valuations have outpaced underlying fundamentals and could be vulnerable to a cyclical downturn. 

Burry's negative sentiment was reinforced by signs of rising competitive pressure. According to reports, Samsung is stepping up its 4nm foundry capacity for HBM4 base-die production, with more than half of that capacity already earmarked for the effort, intensifying competition with Micron in the high-bandwidth memory market.

The moves also signal profit-taking after sharp multi-week rallies, even as demand for memory chips remains at record levels.

Micron Results On Sept. 30

Micron is set to report its fiscal fourth-quarter results on Sept. 30, with investors watching closely for signs that the memory-chip boom driven by AI infrastructure remains intact. 

The company has already guided for $50 billion in revenue, roughly 86% gross margin, and $31 in adjusted EPS, while Wall Street estimates revenue to rise 353% to $51.2 billion and adjusted EPS to drop 83% to $0.53 per share, per Koyfin.

More importantly, investors will be looking for commentary on memory pricing, HBM demand, and the outlook for fiscal 2027.  

Micron, whose fiscal year ended in August, is one of the world’s major producers of DRAM and NAND, while its HBM products have become increasingly important to AI accelerators and data centers. 

Retail View On Memory Chip Stocks

On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment was ‘bullish’ for MU and ‘neutral’ for SNDK on Thursday. “$MU about to be ‘go time’ for this. Fake selloff for the boom boom,” said a trader. 

Another trader wrote: “SNDK With Micron earnings on the 30th and our old faithful, tried and true end of month pump, we should be 1950s plus next week, or sooner.”

Year to date, Micron shares are up 276% and SanDisk shares are up 665%.

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