The group, which operates in an oligopoly with Korea's Samsung and SK Hynix, has posted its second-best operating profit in its history for fiscal year 2025, even slightly exceeding its providential performance during the pandemic, as well as net profit of $8.5bn.
The capital intensity of the business remains acute, although Micron does not fall into the trap of Oracle—see Oracle: New fundamentals and an unanswered question. On the contrary, as a percentage of revenue, capex of $15.9bn this year is lower than it was five years ago.
Nevertheless, capex consumes the vast majority of operating cash flow, which will reach $17.5bn in 2025, excluding the $1bn distributed in stock options. This leaves only a relatively small amount to return to shareholders, with $522m in dividends distributed over the last twelve months.
These figures should be viewed in relation to a market capitalization of $186bn. That said, while the group's margins are erratic—they can easily exceed 30% or approach zero, as was the case last year—the trend has generally been towards an improvement since the consolidation of the sector and the elimination of competition.
Buoyed by the expansion of artificial intelligence and the continuing feverish demand from data center operators, Micron claims to have the best product on the market with its HBM4-standard DRAM memory, and is entering 2026 with the wind in its sails. The market had already factored in this good fortune, as it values Micron at its all-time highs.
See also Micron Technology, Inc.: fragile hearts abstain, published almost exactly a year ago in these same columns. And for a perhaps salutary reminder of how the previous peak of euphoria ended, see Micron Technology, Inc.: Sales in free fall, published two years ago, also in these same columns.
