New York, Jan 16, 2026, 16:23 (EST) — After-hours
- Sandisk shares climbed roughly 1% in late trading, staying close to their recent peaks
- This week, analysts at Benchmark, Barclays, and RBC either raised their price targets or kicked off new coverage.
- A director revealed intentions to offload a small block of shares; the upcoming earnings report is due Jan. 29
Sandisk Corp shares edged up roughly 1% to $413.58 in after-hours trading Friday, having fluctuated between $400.22 and $437.30 earlier in the session. Trading volume hit around 15.4 million shares.
The flash-memory maker has turned into a momentum favorite in early 2026 as investors wager that tighter NAND flash supply — the storage memory used in solid-state drives — will keep prices elevated this year. Retail traders have jumped in too, catapulting the stock about 65% higher so far in 2026 and roughly 730% over the last 12 months, following an almost tenfold surge since it reentered public markets last year. 1
Sandisk, carved out of Western Digital’s flash division, started regular-way trading on Nasdaq in February 2025 under the ticker SNDK. 2
Benchmark lifted its price target on Sandisk to $450 from $260 and maintained a buy rating, citing tighter capacity discipline among NAND manufacturers compared to previous up-cycles. The firm believes this could push margins “to record levels” by 2026. 3
Barclays raised its price target on Sandisk to $385 from $220 but maintained an equal-weight rating. The bank said Sandisk remains “centric to the pillars of the AI ramp,” despite the stock’s recent strong gains. 4
RBC Capital kicked off coverage with a sector perform rating and set a $400 price target. The firm expressed optimism about the NAND cycle and Sandisk’s long-term growth prospects linked to AI. Still, RBC noted the stock’s valuation already factors in almost $40 of earnings per share, suggesting a more balanced outlook moving forward. 5
Sandisk’s action coincided with chip stocks staying steady ahead of a long weekend. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index gained 1.1% during regular trading, while the broader S&P 500 ended mostly flat. 6
A separate filing revealed director Kimberly Alexy submitted a Form 144 notice to offload 1,737 shares, valued around $740,000. This form signals an intended sale of restricted or control stock under SEC Rule 144 but doesn’t ensure the sale will happen. 7
Yet the rally has pushed the stock into territory priced for a full clean-up cycle. NAND prices swing quickly, up or down, and even a slight sign that supply is easing—or that cloud spending stalls—could shake a trade fueled by scarcity and momentum.
Sandisk’s fiscal second-quarter earnings are set for Jan. 29, followed by a conference call that same afternoon after the market closes. 8
U.S. markets are closed Monday for a holiday, giving traders a pause before Tuesday’s session. All eyes will then shift to Jan. 29, when fresh clues are expected on memory pricing, supply discipline, and demand from AI data centers.
