[News] Micron’s 2026 HBM Not Sold Out Yet—But Will Reportedly Be Within Months as Pricing Deals Lock

Micron, which stunned markets in August by hiking its Q4 FY25 outlook, posted earnings today with a bullish tone, flagging strong demand ahead. Reuters quoted CEO Sanjay Mehrotra as saying the company expects to sell out its entire 2026 HBM supply within months, having already locked in HBM3E pricing with most customers and now moving on to talks for next-gen HBM4.

Bloomberg reports that Micron sees the memory crunch stretching into next year, with surging data center demand straining industry supply. The AI boom is also lifting appetite for NAND flash, Micron’s second-largest business, the report suggests.

After earlier rumors of price quote suspensions, Micron claimed it has already sealed pricing deals for most of its 2026 HBM3E output, adding the company plans to sell these through fixed contracts, ensuring steadier revenue streams, according to Bloomberg. Back in June, Micron announced it had shipped 36GB 12-high HBM4 samples to multiple key customers.

On the technology front, TSMC will partner with Micron to manufacture the base logic die for its latest HBM4E, covering both custom and standard products, as per Reuters.

In Q4, Micron’s HBM revenue surged to nearly $2 billion, suggesting an annualized run rate of close to $8 billion, Reuters suggests.

Margins Soar on Strong Pricing

Notably, Reuters highlights that Micron forecasts an adjusted gross margin of 51.5% for the current quarter, far exceeding analysts’ 45.9% estimate, reflecting the ongoing price surge in both DRAM and NAND. An analysts cited in the report says the stronger margin outlook stems from pricing coming in well above expectations.

However, the company offered no details on SOCAMM progress and did not comment on 12H HBM3E pricing specifically. Rival Samsung has reportedly cleared NVIDIA’s verification for 12-layer HBM3E lately and may pursue aggressive pricing to gain market share.

Concerns Persist

Micron topped Wall Street expectations in its latest quarter, delivering adjusted EPS of $3.03 versus the $2.86 forecast, CNBC reports. Revenue reached $11.32 billion, slightly above estimates of $11.22 billion.

Notably, while Micron’s cloud memory unit shone last quarter, posting $4.54 billion in sales—a 214% year-on-year jump—while its core data center business lagged, with revenue falling 23% to $1.57 billion, according to company presentation materials.

Looking ahead to the current fiscal Q1, Micron projects sales around $12.5 billion, well above the $11.94 billion consensus (LSEG), with net income soaring to $3.2 billion—or $2.83 per share—up sharply from $887 million, or 79 cents per share, a year ago, the CNBC report notes.

However, as noted by Bloomberg and The Business Times, Micron warned spending will rise to keep up with growth. The company invested $13.8 billion in new fabs and equipment in fiscal 2025 and plans to increase that investment further this year, the reports suggest.

Read more

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(Photo credit: Micron)