[Edaily Reporter Seong Joowon ] Micron Technology, buoyed by demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, surpassed Meta Platforms in market capitalization and even briefly overtook Tesla during intraday trading.

According to Reuters and CNBC on the 25th (local time), Micron’s stock price surged 18.4% at one point during the trading session, reaching $1,236 per share. Its market capitalization reached $1.398 trillion (approximately 2,158.512 trillion won), surpassing Meta ($1.392 trillion), and it even briefly overtook Tesla ($1.4 trillion) during the trading session.
Micron’s stock price surged after the company announced its third-quarter (March–May) results for fiscal year 2026 the previous day, which significantly exceeded market expectations. Revenue for the quarter reached $41.46 billion, more than four times the $9.3 billion reported in the same quarter of the previous year. This figure significantly exceeded the market consensus estimate (approximately $36 billion) compiled by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).
The company also provided fourth-quarter revenue guidance of approximately $50 billion, projecting growth of more than four times compared to the same period last year ($11.3 billion).
◇Long-term supply contracts are the key factor
The reason behind Micron’s earnings surprise is the explosive growth in memory demand from AI data centers. AI servers require significantly more memory than conventional servers. This demand is driving up the supply of memory for smartphones and PCs, thereby pushing up memory prices across the board.
Micron announced that it has signed long-term supply contracts with 16 customers, ranging from data center operators to automakers. The contracts span 3 to 5 years, and the company has secured total advance purchase commitments of $22 billion (approximately 34 trillion won) from these customers. RBC Capital Markets forecasts that approximately 40% of Micron’s revenue will come from long-term contracts with minimum price guarantees. Analysts note that these contracts act as a buffer, limiting downside risk to margins even during periods of slowing demand.
RBC raised its target price for Micron, stating, “We expect the current upcycle to continue throughout 2027,” and maintained its “Outperform” rating.
◇A Breath of Fresh Air for the Entire Semiconductor Sector
Micron’s earnings report provided a boost to the broader semiconductor sector, which had recently been undergoing a correction. On the day of the announcement, SanDisk surged nearly 22%, while Western Digital rose 5% and Seagate gained 3.2%. Intel (1%), AMD (2.5%), Qualcomm (3.7%), and Applied Materials (13.4%) also saw gains.
Daniela Hasson, Chief Market Analyst at Capital.com, commented, “Micron’s earnings provided the market with a fresh sense of relief that the AI investment cycle remains strong.”
The connection to the Korean market is also noteworthy. When Micron joined the $1 trillion market cap club on May 26, the competitive dynamic with SamsungElectronics—which had previously joined the same club—came into focus. Micron’s confirmation of AI memory demand can be interpreted as a positive signal for the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) business outlook of SamsungElectronics(005930) andSK hynix(000660).
The key issue is the sustainability of the AI infrastructure investment cycle. While Micron’s $22 billion advance purchase commitment and the increased proportion of long-term contracts enhance demand visibility, changes in Big Tech’s capital expenditure plans and an economic slowdown remain potential variables.