Core Insights - Sandisk led the S&P 500 in 2025 with a share price increase of 559% due to strong demand for data storage solutions driven by the artificial intelligence boom [1][2] - The company is expected to continue its strong performance in 2026, with historical trends suggesting an average return of 78% for top-performing stocks in the following year [4][5] Company Performance - Sandisk's current market capitalization is $40 billion, with a share price of $275.24 and a gross margin of 29.33% [6] - The company gained 2 percentage points of NAND market share in the 12 months ending June 2025, while competitors like Samsung, SK Hynix, and Kioxia lost market share [10] Industry Trends - The demand for data storage products, particularly NAND flash memory, is robust due to the buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure [2][9] - Experts predict that flash memory will increasingly replace traditional hard disk drives (HDDs) in data centers, with Pure Storage forecasting that by 2028, nearly no new HDD systems will be sold for enterprise data center computing [8] Financial Outlook - Wall Street anticipates Sandisk's adjusted earnings to grow at an annual rate of 112% through the fiscal year ending June 2028, making its current valuation of 110 times earnings appear reasonable [11] - The median target price for Sandisk among 23 analysts is $280 per share, indicating a modest upside of 4% from the current share price [12]