Micron signaled that the chip industry is ready to boom
Semiconductor specialist Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) is down 4.8% at $63.84 at last glance, even after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for its fiscal third quarter. According to Micron Technology, the memory chip industry is ready for improving profit margins following a trough in revenue.
No less than five analysts hiked their price targets following the event, led by Needham's adjustment up to $80 from $71. Sentiment was already optimistic, though there's still room for additional price-target raises. Coming into today, seven of the 21 in coverage still called MU a tepid "hold" or worse.
Options traders are in a frenzy as well. So far, 163,000 calls and 82,000 puts have crossed the tape, which is eight times the intraday average. Most popular by far is the weekly 6/30 70-strike call.
At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), Micron stock's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 2.63 ranks higher than 99% of readings from the past year. This indicates that options traders have favored bullish bets in the longer-term, too.
The equity's 60-day moving average is keeping today's pullback in check, as the security looks to snap a three-day winning streak. Still, thanks in part to a late-May pop to 12-month highs, MU maintains a nearly 30% year-to-date lead.