Micron dips as Q1 guidance misses estimates by wide margin, plans 50% spending cut
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Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) shares fell nearly 2% in after-hours as the Idaho-based memory chip maker offered first-quarter guidance that missed Wall Street expectations by a wide margin.
Looking to the next quarter, Micron (MU) said it expects revenue to be between $4B and $4.5B, with earnings per share ranging between a loss of 6 cents and a gain of 14 cents. Analysts were expecting Micron (MU) to generate $6.02B in sales and earnings of 87 cents per share.
Micron (MU) also said it would cut wafer fab equipment spending by up to 50% next year compared to last year.
âOur technology and manufacturing leadership in both DRAM and NAND, deep customer relationships, diverse product portfolio, and strong balance sheet put Micron on solid footing to navigate the weakened near-term supply-demand environment," Micron Technology President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said in a statement.
Mehrotra added that Micron (MU) expects to emerge from the downcycle "well positioned to capitalize on the long-term demand for memory and storage.â
Seeking Alpha contributor Robert Castellano said Micron's (MU) spending cut will likely impact Lam Research (LRCX) and Applied Materials (AMAT), as both have "high exposure to memory."
"Micron, got to this point of higher than demanded memory growth by not judiciously monitoring capex, which was the cause of the last downturn of 2019," Castellano said. "But the process is difficult and I estimate that reduced capex will lower capacity growth to 8-9%."
For the period ending September 1, Micron (MU) said it earned $1.45 per share on $6.64B in revenue. Gross margins came in at 40.3%, slightly above estimates of 39.7%.
Analysts were expecting a quarterly gain of $1.37 per share on $6.78B in revenue.
Micron (MU) will host a conference call at 4:30 p.m. EST to discuss the results.
Last month, investment firm J.P. Morgan said that memory chip makers, including Micron (MU), were starting to become more attractive even as pessimism in the industry rises.