New York, January 21, 2026, 09:42 EST — Regular session underway.
- Micron shares climbed early Wednesday, fueled by a rally linked to a Taiwan capacity agreement and ongoing talk of tight memory supply.
- Meaningful DRAM wafer output from the acquired facility is expected to start in the second half of 2027.
- Analysts stepped up their activity on MU in the last day, with several target price increases mixed with at least one downgrade linked to HBM execution.
Micron Technology, Inc. shares jumped 2.8% to $375.21 by 9:39 a.m. EST Wednesday. This came after investors spent two days focusing on Micron’s plan to expand manufacturing in Taiwan amid tight demand for AI memory chips. (StockAnalysis)
Memory is a bottleneck for major cloud and chip buyers racing to build AI infrastructure. When supply runs low, contract prices can jump fast, directly impacting Micron’s earnings.
The timing works out well for bulls. Micron is snapping up “cleanroom” space—the controlled environment essential for chip tools—but the boost in output won’t come through in any meaningful way for some time. That keeps the near-term supply situation mostly unchanged.
Micron announced it has signed a letter of intent to acquire Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing’s P5 fab in Tongluo, Taiwan, for $1.8 billion in cash. The purchase adds roughly 300,000 square feet of cleanroom space. Micron aims to close the deal by Q2 2026, pending regulatory approval, with DRAM wafer production starting in the latter half of 2027. TrendForce estimates the initial phase in 2027 will represent over 10% of Micron’s global capacity as of Q4 2026. (Reuters)
Micron’s operations chief Manish Bhatia described the ongoing shortage as “unprecedented.” (Bloomberg)
DRAM, or dynamic random access memory, serves as the primary “working” memory in PCs and servers. NAND, on the other hand, is flash memory found in storage devices such as solid-state drives.
High-bandwidth memory, or HBM, is stacked DRAM that works with AI processors to speed up data transfer. It’s one of the most contested segments in the market. Micron faces off against bigger competitors targeting the same AI supply chains.
On the Street, Stifel’s Brian Chin boosted his price target for Micron to $360 from $300, maintaining a Buy rating. He said he’s still “upbeat” on tight supply conditions through and beyond fiscal 2026. TD Cowen also raised its target sharply, to $450 from $300, noting in a note shared by TheFly that shortages are “worsening, not improving.” (TipRanks)
Yet the tape isn’t all positive. Aletheia’s Warren Lau cut Micron to Hold from Buy, warning it might take a while for the company to boost performance and “regain confidence” in its high-bandwidth memory product. (TipRanks)
Outside of analyst opinions, the calendar weighs on the outlook: the Taiwan expansion awaits approvals, and memory markets have a history of sudden swings when supply outpaces demand. A drop in AI server spending would hit the high-end memory products that are currently in tight supply especially hard.
Investors are eyeing the ramp schedule in Taiwan closely, waiting to see if customer contracts continue to slip into 2026, as both management and analysts have indicated. Meanwhile, pricing trends across the wider memory sector remain a key driver that could quickly shift sentiment.
Looking ahead, earnings will be the next major catalyst. Micron is scheduled to report sometime between March 18 and March 23. Investors will watch closely for updated guidance on pricing, HBM shipments, and whether there are any shifts to the 2027 production timeline for the Taiwan facility. (Yahoo Finance)
