Sandisk, Western Digital, and others soar as Micron results 'justify elevated valuations'

Sandisk, Western Digital, and others soar as Micron results 'justify elevated valuations' Ines Ferré · Senior Business Reporter Updated Thu, June 25, 2026 at 4:50 PM GMT+2 1 min read MU AMD NVDA INTC MRVL What happened:  Memory and storage stocks rallied on Thursday. Shares of Sandisk ( SNDK ) and Western Digital ( WDC ) gained 10% and 4%, respectively, while chipmaker Qualcomm ( QCOM ) and machine manufacturer Applied Materials ( AMAT ) also rose. What's behind the move: The iShares Semiconductor ETF ( SOXX ) ticked up by more than 1% after Micron Technology's ( MU ) blowout quarterly results reinforced the narrative that capital spending on artificial intelligence continues to accelerate.

That helped lift sentiment, "suggesting investors remain willing to look through short-term volatility as long as the earnings outlook continues to justify elevated valuations," Capital. com senior market analyst Daniela Hathorn said. Meanwhile, AI chip heavyweight Nvidia ( NVDA ) slipped after rival Qualcomm forecast $15 billion in new data center revenue as it heavily broadens beyond smartphones.

What else you need to know: Memory has been a major bottleneck in the artificial intelligence trade, with Micron leading the semiconductor complex. Last month, Micron Technology, Samsung Electronics ( 005930. KS ), and SK Hynix ( 000660.

KS ) all made headlines as they reached $1 trillion valuations for the first time. Stocks across the semiconductor complex have been driving the overall tech sector ( XLK ) up 27% year to date and a whopping 43% since the March 30 lows. Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance.

Follow her on X at @ines_ferre .