暴跌23%，日本铠侠暴雷带崩全行业，存储热潮要凉了吗？

Core Viewpoint - The disappointing financial results of Kioxia, a Japanese storage giant, have raised concerns across the storage industry, contrasting with the overall positive sentiment driven by the AI boom [2][5]. Group 1: Kioxia's Financial Performance - Kioxia reported a significant decline in adjusted net profit for Q2 FY2025, dropping over 60% year-on-year to 40.7 billion yen, falling short of the market analysts' expectation of 47.4 billion yen [2]. - The company's revenue for the same quarter decreased by 7% to 448.3 billion yen, while operating profit fell by 48% to 85.9 billion yen [2]. - Despite the recent stock price drop, Kioxia's stock has seen a remarkable increase of 477% year-to-date, even after the recent decline [3]. Group 2: Market Reaction - Kioxia's poor performance triggered a sell-off in the U.S. storage sector, with Seagate's stock dropping by 7.29%, Western Digital by 5.39%, and Micron Technology by 3.25% following the news [2]. - Kioxia's stock plummeted by 23% in the Japanese market after the earnings report was released [2]. Group 3: Industry Implications - The unexpected decline in Kioxia's profits raises questions about whether this is an isolated incident or indicative of broader challenges facing the storage industry [5]. - Analysts attribute Kioxia's disappointing results to a fixed-price agreement with Apple, which limited profit potential despite rising market prices for NAND chips [6]. - Changes in Kioxia's product mix, including a higher revenue share from lower-margin smartphone storage chips, have also negatively impacted profitability [7]. Group 4: Future Outlook - Kioxia has indicated that demand for its flash products remains strong and plans to adjust its product mix to improve profitability [8]. - The company anticipates record revenue and strong profit recovery in Q4 FY2025, driven by rising average selling prices and robust NAND flash demand fueled by AI [8]. - Micron, another major U.S. storage company, is set to release its latest financial results next month, which will serve as a key indicator for overall storage industry demand [9].