Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) stock rose Thursday after surpassing fiscal first-quarter 2026 expectations and issuing a robust forecast.
Micron reported first-quarter revenue of $13.64 billion, topping estimates, with adjusted earnings of $4.78 per share. Sales grew 20.5% year-over-year, operating cash flow rose to $8.41 billion, and adjusted free cash flow was $3.9 billion.
“In fiscal Q1, Micron delivered record revenue and significant margin expansion at the company level and also in each of our business units,” CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said.
Related: Micron Q1 Preview: Record Quarter Predicted By Analyst — ‘We Recommend Owning The Stock’
Micron ended the quarter with $12 billion in cash, marketable investments, and restricted cash.
The board also approved a quarterly dividend of 11.5 cents per share, payable Jan. 14, 2026, to shareholders of record as of Dec. 29.
For the fiscal second quarter, Micron projected revenue of $18.7 billion, plus or minus $400 million, which is well above analysts’ estimates. The company guided to adjusted earnings of $8.42 per share, plus or minus 20 cents.
Additionally, Mehrotra emphasized that the second-quarter outlook includes record highs in revenue, gross margin, EPS, and free cash flow, and asserted that Micron expects its business performance to continue strengthening throughout fiscal 2026.
Earnings Call: Margins, Pricing And Tax Outlook
On the earnings conference call, a Micron executive stated that for the second quarter, the company anticipates higher pricing, lower costs, and a more favorable product mix, which should expand gross margin. The executive specified that Micron expects a tax rate of about 15.5% for both the fiscal second quarter and fiscal 2026.
The executive also pointed to high-bandwidth memory, stating that Micron expects the HBM market to grow at a rate of about 40% annually through 2028, rising from roughly $35 billion in 2025 to around $100 billion in 2028.
Furthermore, Micron forecasts that in calendar 2025, DRAM bit demand will grow in the low 20% range and NAND bit demand in the high teens, while industry supply is expected to remain below demand for the foreseeable future.
Management further clarified its future spending and capacity plans. The executive indicated that Micron plans to raise fiscal 2026 capital expenditures to about $20 billion.
The company expects to produce its first wafers from the new Idaho fabrication facility in early 2027, is targeting a second Idaho fab by 2028, plans to begin construction on its New York fab in 2026, and anticipates that operations there will commence by 2030.
Analyst Updates
Wall Street analysts moved swiftly following Micron’s results, broadly reaffirming bullish views while lifting their price forecasts. Needham’s N. Quinn Bolton reiterated a Buy rating with a $300 price forecast.
Bank of America Securities analyst Vivek Arya upgraded Micron to Buy from Neutral and raised his price forecast to $300 from $250.
Mizuho’s Vijay Rakesh maintained an Outperform rating and increased his price forecast to $290 from $270, while Rosenblatt’s Kevin Cassidy reiterated Buy and sharply lifted his price forecast to $500 from $300.
Additional firms echoed the positive momentum. Morgan Stanley’s Joseph Moore maintained an Overweight rating and raised his price forecast to $350 from $338.
Raymond James analyst Melissa Fairbanks kept an Outperform stance and boosted her price forecast to $310 from $190. Piper Sandler’s Harsh Kumar also maintained an Overweight rating, lifting his price forecast to $275 from $200.
MU Price Action: Micron Technology shares were up 14.48% at $258.17 during premarket trading on Wednesday. The stock is trading near its 52-week high of $264.75, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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