Micron's Q4 earnings surpass Wall Street's expectations in latest test of AI trade

Core Insights - Micron's fiscal fourth quarter earnings exceeded Wall Street expectations, signaling positive momentum for the AI sector and investor confidence in the company's stock performance [1][2] - The company's revenue for the fourth quarter reached $11.3 billion, surpassing the $11.15 billion forecasted by analysts, with adjusted earnings per share of $3.03, exceeding the projected $2.84 [2] - Data centers contributed significantly to Micron's revenue, accounting for 40% of total revenue in the fourth quarter, driven by the AI data center boom [3] Financial Performance - Micron's guidance for the fiscal first quarter of 2026 is optimistic, projecting revenue between $12.2 billion and $12.8 billion, above the $11.9 billion expected by analysts, with adjusted earnings per share anticipated to be between $3.60 and $3.90, also exceeding the $3.05 forecasted [4] - The company has positioned itself to benefit from the anticipated trillions of dollars in AI investments, with CEO Sanjay Mehrotra highlighting Micron's unique position as the only US-based memory manufacturer [5] Competitive Landscape - Micron is one of the three leading memory chipmakers, alongside SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, with the latter lagging in the AI sector [6] - Micron's DRAM chips, essential for various applications including AI data centers, have historically generated the majority of the company's revenue [6] - The company's HBM chips, which are critical for AI infrastructure, are utilized in conjunction with Nvidia's GPUs in data centers [7]