New York, Feb 12, 2026, 04:51 EST — Premarket
- Micron’s shares climbed roughly 3.5% in premarket trading, building on a steep rise from the previous day.
- The update came after new remarks revealed Micron’s next-gen HBM4 memory has entered volume production and is already shipping.
- Analysts highlighted a tightening DRAM supply and climbing prices as key factors.
Micron Technology, Inc. shares climbed 3.5% to $424.72 in early trading Thursday, adding to Wednesday’s big jump of 9.9% that pushed the stock to $410.34 at the close.
This deal is crucial since Micron’s future growth hinges on high-bandwidth memory, or HBM — stacked DRAM chips that speed up data transfer next to AI accelerators. While HBM makes up a tiny fraction of memory volumes, it generates significant profits and often depends on just a few key customer contracts.
HBM4 is stepping up the game, and the competition is fierce. Samsung Electronics announced it has begun shipping HBM4 memory to undisclosed customers, as rivals scramble to secure deals for Nvidia’s upcoming AI chips. The company claims its HBM4 operates at 11.7 gigabits per second, with peaks hitting 13 Gbps. Song Jai-hyuk, Samsung’s chip chief, described customer feedback as “very satisfactory.” Reuters
Micron fired back on Wednesday, quashing rumors about its HBM4 readiness. CFO Mark Murphy told a Wolfe Research conference, “We have been in high volume production on HBM4. We’ve commenced customer shipments of HBM4,” adding that shipments are ramping in the calendar first quarter—“a quarter earlier” than the December earnings call suggested. He noted HBM4 performance exceeded 11 gigabits per second and expressed strong confidence in its performance, quality, and reliability. Lynx Equity Strategies’ KC Rajkumar said this update should “put to rest the noise that had been running around” about Micron’s HBM4. Investing
Morgan Stanley pushed the price angle hard. On Wednesday, it bumped its Micron price target from $350 to $450, maintaining an Overweight rating. The bank highlighted a DRAM shortage alongside sharp DDR5 price jumps. It suggested mainstream prices might hit “high teens ASP per GB” — that’s average selling price per gigabyte — as buyers scramble for limited supply. Investing
Traders are focused on whether “shipping” translates into steady market share on major AI ramps, beyond just initial batches. Factors like HBM qualification, yields, and how quickly volume picks up will determine who lands the follow-on orders.
There’s a downside risk. If customers take longer to approve multiple suppliers, or if yields stumble and limit production, the pricing boost could evaporate quickly — memory prices have frequently dropped once supply catches up.
The key test coming up is if the premarket gains stick around when U.S. markets open at 9:30 a.m. EST. Options traders will probably adjust implied volatility after Wednesday’s surge.
Looking ahead, investors are keenly eyeing Nvidia’s upcoming product cycle to glean insights on HBM4 sourcing. Micron has marked NVIDIA GTC in San Jose, California, from March 16–19 on its events calendar—a key event for AI hardware roadmaps and supply-chain updates.
