Stock Market Today, March 18: Micron Technology Holds Steady as Investors React to Key Earnings Report on AI Memory Demand
Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) manufactures DRAM, flash memory, and SSDs. The stock closed Wednesday at $461.73, essentially flat with a 0.01% gain, as coverage and analyst previews highlight its after-the-bell fiscal Q2 earnings report. It’s a key test of AI-driven memory demand and elevated valuation expectations.
Trading volume reached 46.1 million shares, coming in about 30% above its three-month average of 35.5 million shares. Micron Technology IPO'd in 1984 and has grown 32,647% since going public.
How the markets moved today
The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) fell 1.37% to 6,624, while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) declined 1.46% to finish at 22,152. Within semiconductors, industry peers Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) closed at $304.9 (-2.84%) and Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) finished at $406.77 (-3.40%) as investors reassess AI hardware momentum.
What this means for investors
Micron stock has soared this year as investors focus on skyrocketing AI-driven memory pricing. Tech sector investors monitoring earnings didn’t move Micron shares much during the session with expectations that quickly rising sales and earnings may already be priced into Micron stock.
Micron reported earnings after the market close confirming that revenue nearly tripled from the year-ago period and soared 75% just since last quarter. Income and cash flow also jumped to record levels. Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra called memory a “strategic asset” in the AI era.
Shares dipped after hours on the report, though, as investors reacted with a “sell the news” mentality, even as the company predicted another sharp increase in revenue in fiscal Q3.
Should you buy stock in Micron Technology right now?
Before you buy stock in Micron Technology, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Micron Technology wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $508,877!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,115,328!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 936% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 189% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of March 18, 2026.
Howard Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Micron Technology and Western Digital. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
