How Micron Technology Stock Soared 21% Last Month
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By Anders Bylund – Jan 8, 2026 at 8:33AM ESTKey PointsAI-driven demand for memory chips pushed Micron's quarterly revenue up 56.6% year over year.The memory-chip market is notoriously cyclical, but AI demand may break the boom-bust pattern.Micron's stock looks like a bargain compared to AI darlings like Nvidia, AMD, and Palantir.CEO says this is worth 18 Nvidias. Will this make the world's first trillionaire? ›Micron stock trades at all-time highs after jumping 21% in December 2025. Here's why the memory-chip maker's best days may still be ahead.Shares of Micron Technology (MU 1.08%) rose 20.7% in December 2025, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. After this boost, Micron is setting all-time price records nearly every day. There is no mystery around this jump: Micron crushed Wall Street's expectations in the Q1 2026 report it published on Dec. 17. ExpandNASDAQ: MUMicron TechnologyToday's Change(-1.08%) $-3.71Current Price$339.71Key Data PointsMarket Cap$382BDay's Range$337.19 - $346.2752wk Range$61.54 - $346.30Volume7.5KAvg Vol26MGross Margin45.56%Dividend Yield0.14% Micron's AI-powered earnings bonanza Yes, you guessed it. Artificial intelligence (AI) is driving heavy demand for Micron's computer memory. From long-term storage Flash/NAND chips to working SDRAM for servers and end-user devices, anything that touches AI services is hungry for more memory nowadays. The need is particularly urgent for so-called high bandwidth memory (HBM), a new type of chip that's suitable for the data-crunching systems that train AI models. The demand is strong enough to change the structure of the memory-chip market. Production lines are running at full speed, Micron and others are building more chip-making facilities as fast as they can, and unit prices are still soaring due to chronic shortages. Micron is going to great lengths to produce more AI-oriented memory chips, to the point of retiring the Crucial brand after decades of selling consumer-facing memory modules and solid-state drives (SSDs). The machines that make Crucial products will generate more revenue for Micron in the AI-specific memory segment. All told, Micron's revenues rose 56.6% year-over-year in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026. Net income jumped from $1.87 billion to $5.24 billion, earnings per share nearly quadrupled, and free cash flow skyrocketed from $112 million to $3.91 billion. It's an understatement to call this a breakthrough quarter, and the financials should continue to grow stronger in fiscal 2026 and beyond. Image source: Micron Technology. Micron's good times could keep rolling, for once I understand if you don't expect Micron's good times to last very long. The memory chip market is notoriously cyclical, as a handful of massive chip suppliers usually overreact to both positive and negative changes in end-market demand.Advertisement All signs suggest that this upturn should be different, though. The AI boom is larger than the smartphone explosion, and certainly more substantial than the intentional oversupply that usually signals another downturn. Memory-hogging AI systems will probably consume as many chips as the leading producers can come up with for the foreseeable future. So Micron's stock is trading at all-time highs for good reason. Its newfound revenue growth and explosive cash generation could be early harbingers of much greater results in the long run. The projections may be too optimistic, but there's still a generous margin of error in Micron's valuation despite a soaring price chart. The stock trades at just 8.4 times forward earnings projections right now, making it a bargain next to AI-based market darlings like AMD (AMD 2.08%), Nvidia (NVDA +1.00%), or Palantir Technologies (PLTR +1.00%): Valuation Metric Micron Nvidia AMD Palantir Price to Forward Earnings (forward P/E) 8.4 24.7 32.0 183.4 Price/Earnings to Growth (PEG) 0.12 0.51 0.69 3.76 Data collected from Finviz on Jan. 7, 2026. Micron is already one of my largest and most profitable stock positions. I'm tempted to buy more shares right now, despite the stock price reaching an all-time high. There should be fuel left to burn in Micron's AI-driven growth rockets.Read NextJan 8, 2026 •By Timothy GreenWhy Panther Lake Is Intel's Most Important Product Launch in YearsJan 8, 2026 •By Harsh ChauhanUndervalued and Ignored: 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks With Market-Beating PotentialJan 8, 2026 •By Jose NajarroNvidia Changed the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Market Once Again With These Latest AnnouncementsJan 8, 2026 •By Jennifer SaibilThe Smartest Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock to Buy With $1,000 Right NowJan 8, 2026 •By Timothy GreenWhy UiPath Stock Rocketed 29% Higher in 2025Jan 8, 2026 •By Manali Pradhan, CFAInvestors Are Still Bullish on AI Stocks. Here Are 2 to Buy in 2026.About the AuthorAnders Bylund is a contributing Motley Fool media and technology analyst covering semiconductors, cloud computing, internet infrastructure, quantum computing, and streaming media. Previously, Anders was a systems administrator for Nielsen Technology and CSX, gaining hands-on experience with enterprise-class systems. He was also a freelance writer for Ars Technica, TIME, USA Today, CNN, WIRED, and AOL's Daily Finance. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in library and information sciences from Florida State University. He believes in coyotes and time as an abstract.TMFZahrimX@TMFZahrimStocks MentionedNvidiaNASDAQ: NVDA$188.94 (+0.01%) $+1.70Micron TechnologyNASDAQ: MU$339.71 (0.01%) $3.71Advanced Micro DevicesNASDAQ: AMD$209.88 (0.02%) $4.47Palantir TechnologiesNASDAQ: PLTR$181.51 (+0.01%) $+1.80*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.Advertisement