Memory stocks are getting hammered midday Wednesday as a sector-wide rout intensifies. SanDisk (NASDAQ:SNDK | SNDK Price Prediction) is leading the way lower, with SanDisk shares down 7% to $1,019. Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) stock is down 6% to $775, and the Roundhill Memory ETF (CBOE:DRAM) is also lower by 4% to $46.
The move caps a brutal stretch for the group. SanDisk shares are down 36% over five days. SK Hynix‘s (NASDAQ:SKHY) U.S.-listed ADR is down 2% at $128 after its own steep slide.
SK Hynix Report and Capex Shock Fuel the Selloff
The trigger is SK Hynix’s Q2 report. The Korean memory giant delivered a record operating profit, up 557% year over year (YoY) with a record operating margin of 76%, but the print still missed lofty expectations. More important, SK Hynix guided to lift 2026 capex by 50% to at least $31 billion, stoking fears the AI capex cycle is overheating.
Barclays cut its price target on SK Hynix shares to $300 from $330 while keeping an Overweight rating. SKHY only began trading in New York on July 10 in the largest-ever U.S. IPO by a foreign company, and the ADR is already down 23% since listing. Morningstar’s William Kerwin has called SanDisk’s NAND boom “tremendous, but finite,” keeping a $1,000 price target and a “Very High” uncertainty rating.
Sector Rout Broadens Beyond Memory
The downturn isn’t isolated. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index is down 19% in July, on track for its worst month since 2008, with all its members below their 50-day moving averages. A strong Shanghai debut from Chinese memory maker CXMT reignited oversupply concerns just as Fed rate-hike worries and U.S.-Iran tensions add risk-off pressure.
The DRAM ETF sits at the center of the storm. The Roundhill Memory ETF has fallen 20% over the past five sessions. Its top holdings include Samsung Electronics at 24.99%, SK Hynix at 24.22%, and Micron at 23.83%, giving the fund a highly concentrated, volatile profile.
This is a single-theme vehicle, and its swings show it. The broad tape reflects the pressure too, with the NASDAQ 100 off 1.36% and the S&P 500 down 0.92%.
Storage Names Buck the Trend
Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) and Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) are the counter-trend green names. Seagate shares are up 2% to $759 after the company’s Q4 earnings beat, and Western Digital shares are flat/unchanged at $465. The split between HDD-focused storage names and NAND/DRAM memory names is stark, suggesting the selling is targeted at capex-cycle concerns rather than the broader data-center storage theme.
Retail investors are noticing the disconnect. One highly upvoted r/stocks thread this morning framed the puzzle bluntly: “will SNDK and MU come green today after SKHY results? Probably not despite great earnings.” Reddit sentiment on SanDisk has stabilized into the neutral 49-50 range after collapsing to 39 at Tuesday’s open, hinting the panic may be cooling.
What to Watch Now
Investors can watch for whether SanDisk stock holds the $1,000 level that anchors the Morningstar target. Seagate’s earnings call at 5:00 p.m. ET could reset the storage-versus-memory narrative if management reiterates the AI-driven demand story.
Momentum traders may keep the memory tape active through the close, with the HDD-versus-NAND divergence likely to remain the day’s defining theme. Watch for whether Seagate’s commentary on cloud data center demand and its Mozaic HAMR platform can stabilize sentiment across the broader storage complex.
If SK Hynix’s capex guide continues to weigh on the group, expect further pressure on Micron and SanDisk into the back half of the week. Conversely, a constructive Seagate call could mark a near-term inflection for storage sentiment heading into next week.
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