Memory and data storage stocks rallied in the after-hour trading session in the U.S. after an earnings beat and strong guidance for FY4Q26 from Micron Technology sparked the market late Wednesday.
Micron reported F3Q26 earnings last night, which significantly exceeded expectations with revenue of $41.5bn and EPS of $25.11, both well above market forecasts. The company also achieved a record gross margin (GPM) of 84.9%, reflecting stronger-than-expected pricing power for DRAM/NAND.
Bualuang Securities emphasized that the most critical factor was not just the earnings beat but also the F4Q26 guidance, with projected revenue of $50bn and EPS around $31—well above previous consensus, confirming their preview view that F4Q26 guidance is the turning point determining whether F3Q26 is only a strong quarter or the start of ongoing EPS revision.
Another positive sign comes from the 16 strategic customer agreements and around $22bn in financial commitments/deposits, which validate that this AI Memory Cycle has a higher runway than previous cycles and mitigates the traditional boom-bust risk for memory businesses.
The earnings announcement from Micron sparked a rally in other related stocks after-hours. SanDisk Corp jumped 12%, while Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) rose 14.64%, Western Digital Corp gained 12.36% and Seagate Technology Holdings increased nearly 10%. Additionally, Nasdaq Futures rose 1.6% to 29,689 points.
