"Memory Semiconductor Winter Is Turning into Spring"

Micron Stock Price Soars 10%

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] "The memory semiconductor winter is turning into spring."

On the 21st (local time), the US investment media MarketWatch described the strong performance and sharp rise in stock price of semiconductor company Micron Technology in this way.

Micron, which mainly produces NAND flash and DRAM, saw its stock price surge 10.54% on the Nasdaq market that day, closing at $90.68. According to FactSet, this increase was the largest since April 6, 2020, when it rose 12.5%.

Micron's stock price had steadily declined from a peak of $95 in April to as low as $66 at the end of October, but reversed to a strong upward trend since November.

The sharp rise in stock price that day was based on the positive evaluation of the earnings and outlook announced the previous day.

Matt Bryson, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, said, "The winter of the memory market is turning into spring." Since Micron usually maintains a conservative outlook, this announcement was analyzed as unusual and positive. Analyst Bryson also raised Micron's target stock price from $85 to $100.

He expressed surprise, saying, "Contrary to the expected harsh memory market downturn, Micron is indicating that the market bottom is approaching."

Earlier, Morgan Stanley Securities predicted a downturn in the memory semiconductor market in a report titled "Memory, Winter is Coming," and the stock prices of memory semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix plummeted simultaneously.

Micron's strong earnings brought warmth to the entire semiconductor sector. AMD rose 6.2%, Nvidia 4.8%, and the stock prices of non-memory semiconductor companies rebounded, recovering from the recent adjustment caused by the spread of the Omicron variant.

The stock prices of semiconductor equipment companies such as Lam Research, Applied Materials, and ASML also rose nearly 4%.