Memory-Chip Maker Micron Crushes Fourth-Quarter Earnings Views

Memory-chip maker #MicronTechnology ( MU ) late Tuesday reported much better-than-expected sales and earnings in its fiscal fourth quarter ended Aug. 31, and guided analysts higher for the current quarter. The Boise, Idaho-based company earned $2.02 a share excluding items, reversing a year-earlier loss of 1 cent a share. Sales were $6.14 billion, up 91% year over year. Wall Street analysts expected earnings of $1.84 a share and revenue of $5.96 billion in the period. Micron stock was up more than 3% in after-hours trading on the stock market today . During the regular session, shares fell 2% to 34.18. For Micron's current fiscal first quarter, the company expects to earn $2.16 a share excluding items on sales of $6.3 billion, based on the midpoint of its guidance. In the same period last year, Micron earned 32 cents a share on sales of $3.97 billion. Wall Street has been modeling for $1.85 a share in non-GAAP earnings on sales of $6.06 billion. IBD'S TAKE: Micron stock has an IBD Composite Rating of 90, meaning it has outperformed 90% of stocks in key metrics over the past 12 months. For more analysis of Micron, visit the IBD Stock Checkup . Micron provides memory chips for PCs, smartphones, consumer electronics, data centers, enterprise storage, automotive and other applications. It gets about two-thirds of its revenue from DRAM chips, with the rest coming mostly from Nand data-storage chips. Micron benefited from "robust demand" for its memory and storage products as well as solid execution in the fourth quarter, Micron Chief Executive Sanjay Mehrotra said in a news release. "We expect healthy industry fundamentals to continue into 2018, supported by increasingly diverse end markets and applications," Mehrotra said. "We believe our focus on accelerating the deployment of advanced technologies and solutions will address our customers' evolving requirements, further strengthen our financial foundation, and enhance shareholder value."

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