Micron rises after Chinese memory rival forecasts revenue jump

Micron Technology shares rallied on Oct 19, Barron’s reported, tying the gain to a revenue forecast from a Chinese competitor in memory chips. The report appeared before trading opened in New York, and Barron’s gave no price or size for the move.

The rebound came after a hard run of losses for the Nasdaq-listed stock. For readers who hold Samsung Electronics or SK hynix, the day offers a look at how US investors are reacting to upbeat news from China’s memory makers.

The rally followed the worst day since Aug 24

Micron closed at US$878.84 on Oct 16, the last session before the rally, down 5.63% from the Oct 15 close. It was the stock’s biggest one-day decline since Aug 24, when it dropped 5.83%, thirty-seven sessions earlier. The Oct 16 loss capped a broader slide: from Sept 28 to Oct 16, Micron shed 16.62%.

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Investors who follow SK hynix in US trading can compare the two listings in SKHY vs 000660.

Kioxia fell as margin debt hit records

Memory stocks elsewhere in Asia were under strain on the same day. Seoul Economic Daily reported a steep drop in shares of Kioxia, the Japanese memory maker, and linked it to record levels of margin debt, money investors borrow to hold shares.

Micron’s fiscal fourth quarter

In the fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Sept 3, Micron’s revenue reached US$54.229 billion, up 30.81% from the quarter before and 379.27% from a year earlier. The company filed the report on Oct 9.

Operating profit came to US$43.751 billion, the highest in at least six quarters, up 31.31% from the prior quarter and 1,097.35% from a year earlier. Net income was US$37.701 billion.

Korean memory export prices

The Bank of Korea’s export price index for DRAM, the working memory used in servers and phones, stood at 289.16 in September (2020=100). It rose 2.26% from August and 247.72% from a year before.

The matching index for flash memory, which stores data, was 245.72 in September. It eased 0.69% from August but was 244.05% above its level a year earlier. These indexes track Korean export prices, not Micron’s own prices. For how the two Korean makers compare in stacked AI memory, see Samsung and SK hynix in HBM.

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Information only, not investment advice.