NEW YORK, Jan 8, 2026, 09:40 EST — Regular session
- Micron shares fall about 1% early Thursday after a sharp start to 2026 for memory-chip stocks
- UBS and Piper Sandler raise price targets to $400, citing tight 2026 supply and AI-driven demand
- Micron set a Jan. 16 groundbreaking for its planned New York megafab
Micron Technology Inc shares fell 1.1% to $339.55 in early trading on Thursday, after touching $342.50 and $336.33, as the chipmaker’s recent surge cooled.
The moves matter because investors are trying to judge whether a tight memory market is turning into something more durable, driven by data centers building out artificial intelligence systems. Samsung Electronics this week forecast record quarterly operating profit as demand for memory chips used in AI applications lifted prices, a read-through for rivals that sell similar products. 1
UBS lifted its price target on Micron to $400 from $300 and kept a Buy rating, saying customers are treating DRAM — the main working memory used in servers and PCs — as a more strategic part of AI systems. The bank argued that each new generation of high-bandwidth memory, the fast chips paired with AI processors, becomes obsolete faster, discouraging customers from piling up inventory and, in turn, dampening the cycle’s usual boom-bust swings. 2
Piper Sandler also raised its target to $400 from $275, saying supply for calendar 2026 is “effectively sold out” and capacity additions are limited. It said Micron management pointed to “value derived” pricing for higher-value products such as HBM4, the next generation of high-bandwidth memory. 3
Micron on Wednesday said it will officially break ground on Jan. 16 on its planned megafab in Onondaga County, New York, calling it a $100 billion project with up to four fabs. “Breaking ground at Micron’s New York megafab is a pivotal moment for Micron and the United States,” CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said. 4
Memory and storage names have swung sharply this week after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, speaking at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, outlined plans that include a new layer of storage technology. Micron rose 10% on Tuesday alongside SanDisk and Western Digital, with the group hitting record highs, Reuters reported. 5
Micron has been trading near its recent highs, with analysts pointing to the mid-$340s area as a near-term ceiling after this week’s run. Piper Sandler noted the stock was near its 52-week high of $344.55 in its note. 6
The risk for bulls is familiar: memory prices can turn fast if customers cut orders or if supply comes on quicker than expected, and a stock priced for a long run can stumble on even small cracks in demand.
Next up, investors will look toward Micron’s next quarterly results, with an earnings date listed for March 18, and any fresh signals on contract pricing and supply discipline into 2026. 7
