New York, May 31, 2026, 11:01 EDT
- Micron finished Friday at $971, rising 29.3% from its May 22 close after the holiday-shortened U.S. trading week.
- AI memory demand, UBS’s big price target hike and strength in tech drove the rally.
- Options markets point to traders expecting another sharp swing next week. Samsung’s new AI memory samples could shake up the competition.
Micron Technology’s market cap is now above $1 trillion, and its stock hit an all-time high after AI demand fueled one of the best weeks this year for the memory-chip maker during a four-day trading week.
U.S. stock markets stayed closed Sunday. The previous week was also shorter because of the Memorial Day holiday on May 25. Standard Nasdaq hours are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern, Monday through Friday.
The stock settled at $971 on Friday, up 5.1% for the session and up 29.3% since May 22, market data shows. Market cap was roughly $1.11 trillion at the close.
Why it matters now: Investors aren’t looking at Micron as just a cycle-driven memory stock anymore. It’s starting to trade closer to the AI suppliers at the center of the current buildout, as high-bandwidth memory, or HBM—fast stacked memory used for AI chips—stays hard to find.
UBS kicked things off earlier this week, raising its target on Micron to $1,625 from $535. UBS pointed to rising AI demand and new long-term supply deals. The brokerage said these contracts, which guarantee volume and partly lock prices, could steady Micron’s earnings. UBS also said there’s “no reason” Micron shouldn’t trade more like Nvidia on a price-to-earnings basis if AI demand and contract visibility keep going up. Reuters
Micron hit a $1 trillion market cap for a short time Tuesday. “Micron sits at the center” of growing demand for memory, B. Riley Wealth chief market strategist Art Hogan said. Investors are pushing past the early AI stocks and picking up the chip and storage suppliers needed for data center growth. Reuters
Micron could see some big moves next week. Options markets are pricing in a roughly 10% move for the stock in either direction by the end of next week, according to Investopedia. Micron is set to report earnings June 24 after the bell.
S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow closed at record highs on Friday, lifted mainly by tech after Dell’s earnings. The S&P 500 gained 1.43% for the week, with the Nasdaq up 2.39% and the Dow up 0.9%. Ohsung Kwon, chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo, said AI sentiment was “euphoric,” but put the rally down to earnings. Reuters
Samsung Electronics is shipping out samples of its new 12-layer HBM4E chip, saying Friday the new chip is over 20% faster than earlier HBM4 models. The company wants to win back share from SK Hynix and Micron in the AI memory market, where Nvidia-driven demand is in focus.
“Early movers” in HBM usually get most of the orders, KB Securities-Jefferies head of research Jeff Kim said. Counterpoint Research sees SK Hynix with 57% share in HBM for the fourth quarter of 2025, Samsung at 22%, and Micron at 21%. Reuters
Investors may have gotten ahead of themselves. Options are pricing in a 10% swing in either direction. If Samsung starts to close the gap on qualification, if cloud buyers ease up on orders, or if memory prices weaken, Micron’s new premium could come under pressure.
Micron still trades on the same setup: AI memory is tight, targets keep rising, and the stock doesn’t look like the old MU anymore. On Monday, the market will see if buyers stick with it after the weekend.
