Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) is ending Tuesday’s session with the kind of “quiet” after-hours tape that often masks an unusually busy backdrop: a holiday-shortened trading day ahead, a stock sitting near fresh highs, and Wall Street still revising forecasts after Micron’s blowout fiscal Q1 results and guidance last week.
As of late Tuesday evening, Micron was slightly lower in extended trading—down about 0.4% to ~$275.46—after finishing the regular session near ~$276. The stock’s day range was roughly $272.32 to $281.86, underscoring how quickly sentiment can swing even without a single headline crossing after the bell. [1]
Below is what investors should know tonight—covering today’s news and analysis, the latest forecast changes, and the key setup points to watch before the market opens on Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025.
Micron stock after hours: where MU stands tonight
Micron’s after-hours move is modest, but the context matters:
- After-hours: about $275.46 (-0.41%) [2]
- Last regular-session level: about $275.98 (-0.22%) vs. prior close ~$276.59 [3]
- Tuesday range: roughly $272.32 to $281.86 [4]
That $281.86 area is also being treated as a key reference point in today’s market commentary because it aligns with the stock’s latest push into new-high territory. [5]
The important takeaway for tonight: there wasn’t a single, market-moving Micron-specific press release after the bell. The stock is largely trading on (1) post-earnings re-pricing and (2) today’s incremental analyst and options-flow signals.
Why Micron remains in focus: the “AI memory” supercycle is still the core narrative
Micron’s current tape is still echoing last week’s earnings reset—and those numbers were significant enough that they continue to drive same-day upgrades, new price targets, and revised earnings models.
The results that reset the debate
Micron reported fiscal Q1 2026 results showing:
- Revenue:$13.64 billion [6]
- Non-GAAP EPS:$4.78 [7]
- Non-GAAP gross margin:56.8% [8]
- Operating cash flow:$8.41 billion [9]
Just as important: Micron’s own “business outlook” table guided fiscal Q2 2026 to:
- Revenue:$18.70B ± $400M
- Non-GAAP gross margin:68.0% ± 1.0%
- Non-GAAP EPS:$8.42 ± $0.20 [10]
Reuters framed that outlook as a dramatic gap versus prior Street expectations, noting Micron’s adjusted profit forecast near double what analysts had been modeling and revenue guidance far above consensus at the time. [11]
The “tight supply” message that’s driving forecasts
Micron’s leadership has been explicit that memory markets are tight—and not just for a quarter or two.
Reuters highlighted management comments that memory markets could remain tight past 2026, alongside a broader theme: AI data centers are absorbing capacity, and supply simply isn’t catching up fast enough. [12]
That same dynamic has been amplified in tech coverage, including the idea that DRAM and NAND constraints could “persist through and beyond 2026” as AI demand accelerates. [13]
Today’s news and analysis: $500 price-target buzz, options signals, and “sold out through 2026” talk
While see-sawing headlines are common in a high-momentum semiconductor name, today’s MU coverage converged on three themes: aggressive price targets, options positioning, and the durability of Micron’s high-bandwidth memory (HBM) demand.
1) A Street-high $500 price target is making the rounds again
One of the most eye-catching forecasts still circulating is a $500 price target tied to Rosenblatt’s post-earnings rethink.
A widely shared analyst roundup highlighted Rosenblatt raising its Micron target to $500 from $300, maintaining a Buy rating and pointing to a mix of stronger memory pricing and cost improvements. [14]
The same coverage also pointed to a broader “upgrade wave” after earnings—referencing target increases from firms including UBS, Wolfe Research, Barclays, Mizuho, and an upgrade to Buy at Bank of America with a higher target. [15]
What matters for tomorrow isn’t whether you agree with $500—it’s that price-target dispersion is widening, which tends to happen when a cyclical stock is repriced as a “structural growth” story.
2) Options flow is active—and not purely bullish
A notable options note published today described “mixed options sentiment” in MU, with:
- About 155,000 contracts traded (roughly in line with average)
- Calls leading puts, with a put/call ratio around 0.61 vs. a typical ~0.85
- Implied volatility (IV30) around 51.21 and an expected daily move near $8.95
- Steeper put-call skew, interpreted as increased demand for downside protection [16]
Translation for Wednesday morning: even with bullish analyst notes circulating, some traders are paying up to hedge—often a sign that investors expect bigger intraday swings (especially in a holiday-thinned session).
3) “HBM sold out through 2026” is the headline that keeps resurfacing
One of the most bullish pieces of analysis published today argued that Micron has effectively changed how investors treat the memory cycle by locking in unusually strong visibility.
That analysis claimed Micron’s HBM capacity is “completely sold out through calendar year 2026,” with pricing for most of that volume already set—an important point because it shifts the discussion from “spot pricing roulette” to contracted, higher-margin revenue visibility. [17]
The same analysis highlighted how data center exposure has become central to Micron’s business mix—citing data center at a record ~56% of revenue—which aligns with Micron’s own segment reporting: Cloud Memory Business Unit revenue plus Core Data Center Business Unit revenue totals about $7.66B out of $13.64B, or roughly 56%. [18]
Forecast check: where “the numbers” are shifting now
Beyond splashy targets, the more durable driver is model revision—EPS and revenue estimates moving up (and staying up).
A Zacks research note published today emphasized the scale of recent estimate revisions, including:
- Consensus EPS for the current quarter: about $8.39, with the consensus estimate sharply higher over the last 30 days
- Consensus sales estimate for the current quarter: about $18.72B [19]
Those figures are directionally consistent with Micron’s own Q2 guideposts (revenue ~$18.7B; non-GAAP EPS ~$8.42). [20]
For Wednesday’s open, that matters because it helps explain why MU can drift down a few tenths in after-hours without the bull case “breaking”: the Street is still digesting upward revisions.
What to watch before the market opens Wednesday, Dec. 24
With no major after-hours Micron headline, the “before the open” checklist is mostly about positioning, levels, and liquidity.
Key MU levels traders are watching
- Tuesday high: ~$281.86 (recent peak / breakout reference) [21]
- Tuesday low: ~$272.32 (near-term support reference) [22]
- After-hours print: ~$275.46 (where overnight sentiment is anchored right now) [23]
Signals that can move MU quickly in a thin session
- Semiconductor tape + AI infrastructure headlines: MU is increasingly trading like an AI supply-chain proxy (especially memory tied to accelerators). [24]
- Any fresh “HBM supply / contract / capacity” commentary: The market is rewarding visibility. [25]
- Options-driven swings: With an options-implied daily move cited near ~$9, a half-day can still feel “full speed.” [26]
One underappreciated headline risk: capex and supply response
Reuters reported Micron increased its 2026 capital expenditure plan to about $20B (from a prior $18B estimate). That’s bullish for capturing demand, but it also keeps investors thinking about when supply catches up—the question that always haunts memory cycles. [27]
Tomorrow’s market setup: Christmas Eve is a shortened session
This is the practical detail many investors miss until the morning of: Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025 is an early close for U.S. equities.
- NYSE: early close 1:00 p.m. ET (eligible options 1:15 p.m. ET) [28]
- Nasdaq: early close 1:00 p.m. ET [29]
- Bond market: SIFMA recommended an early close at 2:00 p.m. ET on Dec. 24 [30]
- Christmas Day (Dec. 25): U.S. markets closed, with regular trading resuming Friday, Dec. 26 [31]
Why this matters for MU specifically: early-close sessions can bring thinner liquidity, wider spreads, and faster air pockets—especially in momentum stocks where both retail and institutional flows can be uneven.
The bull case and the bear case into Wednesday’s open
Micron’s setup right now is unusually clean to frame:
What bulls are leaning on
- Explosive Q2 guidance: revenue ~$18.7B; non-GAAP EPS ~$8.42; non-GAAP GM ~68% [32]
- Tight supply narrative extending beyond 2026 [33]
- HBM visibility through 2026 (as emphasized in today’s analysis) [34]
- Analyst targets and revisions still moving higher in the aftermath of earnings [35]
What skeptics are watching
- Valuation sensitivity: when a cyclical stock gets priced like a structural growth name, it can react sharply to any hint of normalization.
- The supply response timeline: capex is rising; new capacity eventually arrives, and memory cycles historically don’t stay tight forever. [36]
- Hedging demand in options: today’s skew commentary suggests some investors are protecting against downside even while the narrative is bullish. [37]
Bottom line for tonight
Micron stock is slipping only slightly after hours, but the bigger story heading into Wednesday is structural: MU is trading as a core AI infrastructure beneficiary, and today’s coverage reinforced that with fresh analysis, active options positioning, and continued bullish forecasts. [38]
For the Dec. 24 open, the highest-impact “unknown” may not be a Micron headline—it may be how traders handle a shortened session where liquidity is lighter and momentum names can move quickly. [39]
References
1. www.investing.com, 2. www.investing.com, 3. www.investing.com, 4. www.investing.com, 5. www.marketbeat.com, 6. investors.micron.com, 7. investors.micron.com, 8. investors.micron.com, 9. investors.micron.com, 10. investors.micron.com, 11. www.reuters.com, 12. www.reuters.com, 13. www.theverge.com, 14. www.investing.com, 15. www.investing.com, 16. www.tipranks.com, 17. www.marketbeat.com, 18. investors.micron.com, 19. finviz.com, 20. investors.micron.com, 21. www.investing.com, 22. www.investing.com, 23. www.investing.com, 24. www.reuters.com, 25. www.marketbeat.com, 26. www.tipranks.com, 27. www.reuters.com, 28. www.nyse.com, 29. www.nasdaq.com, 30. www.sifma.org, 31. www.marketwatch.com, 32. investors.micron.com, 33. www.reuters.com, 34. www.marketbeat.com, 35. finviz.com, 36. www.reuters.com, 37. www.tipranks.com, 38. www.marketbeat.com, 39. www.nyse.com
