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semiconductorsMicronNVDAtech stocks
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Related tickers and likely impact
NVDA
▼ Likely negativeNvidia
Relevance: medium
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | Information Technology |
| Industry | Semiconductors |
| Market cap | $5.2T |
| Close on 10/21/2026 | 221.97 |
| Change that session | +2.54% |
QQQ
▼ Likely negativeInvesco QQQ Trust
Relevance: medium
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | ETF |
| Close on 10/21/2026 | 725.20 |
| Change that session | +1.05% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
Related news
- Does Micron (MU) Have an Economic Moat at All?
Micron (MU) closed at $931.24 on October 15, with an operating margin of 80.68% and revenue up 379.3% from the same quarter last year. The article says these figures look nothing like a commodity business, citing that only three companies supply nearly all the working memory used in advanced computing and that building a new plant is very costly. However, it argues Micron may lack a durable moat, since standard memory does not lock in customers who can buy from any of the three suppliers, and history shows prices collapse once supply catches up with demand. Capacity decisions made today take two or three years to arrive. The stock trades at 7.02 times next year's expected earnings against 24.78 times over the past year, meaning analysts expect earnings to climb steeply again.
- History Suggests Micron Stock Will Crash and Take Decades to Recover. Is This Time Different?
Micron's stock has surged this year, but the article argues it could crash and take decades to recover, as it did after its 2000 peak. Micron is one of three major DRAM makers, alongside Samsung and SK Hynix, which together control over 85% of the DRAM market; last quarter, 73% of its revenue came from DRAM and 26% from NAND. The author estimates less than 10% of revenue comes from high bandwidth memory (HBM) for AI, so the company is highly exposed to falling prices for conventional DRAM and NAND. Rising output from China's CXMT could push those prices down, and the author expects a steep fall in that case, though less severe than in 2000 and with Micron still able to stay profitable. The author says the stock should be avoided for now.
- What Is Next For Micron Stock?
Micron Technology (MU) shares have returned 415% over the past twelve months, versus 17.3% for the S&P 500, yet the stock trades at 13.2 times earnings compared with 21.9 for the index. Investors doubt that profits earned during a memory shortage will last, while the company has signed long-term agreements covering DRAM and NAND chips through 2030, with about three quarters of the related revenue tied to a pricing framework that sets a floor and a ceiling. Management did not dispute an estimate that these agreements could cover 35% of sales by 2030, though it has not split the figure between DRAM and NAND or disclosed which customers signed. Micron’s Idaho facility is expected to produce its first output in mid-2027, a supply increase that worries some investors. Executives expect the memory market to stay tight through 2028, so the number of long-term agreements signed each quarter is the key measure to watch.
- NVIDIA and Micron Alone Now Contribute 36% of S&P 500 Earnings Growth as Historic Market Concentration Grows
According to The Kobeissi Letter, NVIDIA and Micron are expected to account for 36% of S&P 500 earnings growth in the third-quarter reporting season, contributing 5.2 and 4.6 percentage points to expected 27% year-over-year growth. NVIDIA is expected to report revenue of $108.98 billion, up 91.2% from a year earlier, while Micron's November-quarter revenue is seen at $61.67 billion. NVIDIA's supply commitments reached $279.0 billion in fiscal Q2 2027, up sharply from $119 billion in Q1, largely for memory used in Vera Rubin production that Micron supplies. The article argues these commitments signal months ahead whether AI spending is still accelerating, while rising memory prices could compress margins. The fifteen largest S&P 500 stocks now hold a record 46.7% of the index's market value, versus 27.2% during the 2000 dot-com bubble.
- Micron and Nvidia Are the 2 Biggest Drivers of S&P 500 Earnings Growth. Are Their Stocks Buys?
FactSet lists Micron (MU) and Nvidia (NVDA) as the two biggest contributors to S&P 500 earnings growth in Q3 2026: the index's blended growth is 29%, but would be 20% without the two. Micron reported adjusted EPS of $33.42 for fiscal Q4 2026, with revenue up 379% to $54.2 billion, though its operating margin was roughly flat from the prior quarter, so future growth depends mainly on revenue. Nvidia hasn't reported fiscal Q3 yet, but its outlook points to about $108 billion in revenue, and its non-GAAP net income rose 118% to $54.0 billion in fiscal Q2 2027. Both stocks have fallen: Nvidia near $217, down 9% from its record close, and Micron near $905, about 25% below its record. Micron trades at about 12 times earnings and Nvidia about 14 times; the author argues this makes both worth buying, while noting risks from memory price cycles and slowing AI spending.
- Chamath: Even Google “Tin Cups for Memory” Thanks to Nvidia. Here’s What Happens Next
Microsoft unveiled its third-generation Maia 300 AI chip on Oct. 12, while Chamath Palihapitiya said on the All-In podcast that even Google is short on memory because Nvidia has locked up most packaging and HBM capacity. Memory makers say their capacity is largely sold out for 2027 and probably much of 2028, and Micron has agreements covering most of its calendar 2027 HBM supply at significantly higher prices. Micron’s capex nearly doubled to $30.7 billion in the year ended Sept. 3, 2026, but most of the increase goes to clean-room space arriving in late 2028 and beyond. The article argues Nvidia, whose gross margin was 71.1% in the year ended January 2026, keeps supply control through roughly 2028, though that window could close sooner if rivals add capacity faster than planned.
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Latest news
- Musk's wants to merge SpaceX and Tesla: Here's what to know
Musk said SpaceX and Tesla have formed special committees to study a merger, which would be worth about $3.5 trillion combined and would be the largest corporate deal in history. SpaceX, valued at about $2 trillion after a record listing this year, absorbed Musk's AI startup xAI in February, while Tesla is valued at about $1.5 trillion. Musk holds about 82 percent of SpaceX's voting power but only about 20 percent at Tesla. Dan Ives puts the odds of a deal at 90 percent by early 2027, though Musk called the requirement of a majority of all Tesla shares 'quite a high hurdle'. Loyal retail investors hold an estimated 25 to 27 percent of Tesla shares, and legal obstacles appear slight because both companies moved their incorporation to Texas from Delaware.
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- Meta’s deal to keep Zuckerberg in California adds fuel to wealth tax debate ahead of election
Meta says Mark Zuckerberg will remain in California for eight years and has created a new stock plan that could help cover his taxes if Proposition 40, a 5% tax on Californians worth over $1 billion, passes on Election Day on Nov. 3. According to a filing released with its third-quarter earnings, Meta will issue non-voting Class C shares starting in January, and Zuckerberg can sell or transfer up to 20% of the shares granted to him without affecting his majority voting control. The filing says Zuckerberg’s leadership is crucial to the company’s growth and its AI ambitions, including Meta Superintelligence Labs. Most of the tech industry opposes the measure, while a recent Citrin-Politico poll found 46% in favor and 43% against, suggesting it may fall short of the majority support it needs.
- Nasdaq sell-off: A momentum unwind 'for the record books'
Matt Stucky, chief portfolio manager for equities at Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management, calls Thursday’s sell-off in the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) a momentum unwind “for the record books.” He says the market spent the first half of 2026 driven by a beta and momentum trade led by semiconductors, but in the third quarter, as rates rose, money shifted into quality stocks. He does not think the sell-off is justified by fundamentals, arguing that institutional portfolio managers swapping out of factor positions can drag down whole baskets of stocks. In semiconductors, spot rental rates for Nvidia Blackwell chips are higher than a month ago, showing tightening compute supply, even as financing costs rise and investors worry about neocloud business models and the rising cost of insuring their bonds.
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