(Reuters) – Micron Technology ( MU ) on Wednesday forecast first-quarter revenue that topped Wall Street estimates, betting on strong demand for its high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used by the AI industry, sending the company’s shares up 10%. .
The company is one of three companies supplying HBM chips, along with South Korea’s SK Hynix and Samsung, which has allowed the US firm to tap into demand for semiconductors that help power-generating AI technology.
The AI boom helped Micron win from the memory chip inventory glut in the PC and smartphone markets.
The company forecast first-quarter revenue of $8.70 billion, or minus $200 million, compared with estimates of $8.28 billion, according to LSEG data.
Micron’s results generally set the tone for the chip industry as it reports ahead of peers and serves a broad client base in the PC, data center and smartphone industries.
The company said in June that it had sold out of its HBM chips for the 2024 and 2025 calendar years. The chips are used in AI processors designed by Wall Street darling Nvidia.
Micron expects first-quarter adjusted gross margin to be 39.5%, plus or minus 1%. Analysts had expected an adjusted gross margin of 37.7%.
In the fourth quarter, the company’s revenue rose 93% to $7.75 billion.
(Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Shaunak Dasgupta)
2024-09-26 01:36:36