U.S. storage stocks reach fresh highs as analysts forecast robust demand through 2030

On April 28, storage‑related equities in the U.S. market extended their rally, with SanDisk, Micron Technology and Seagate Technology all recording new highs and continuing a sustained upward trend. In a report published the same day, Wall Street research firm Melius Research argued that elevated storage demand could persist through the end of this decade.

The AI‑driven surge in demand for storage chips has been a primary catalyst for the sector’s strong performance over the past year. High‑bandwidth memory (HBM), which is directly integrated into leading GPUs from Nvidia and AMD, underpins the compute capacity of nearly all major AI data centers. HBM is constructed from stacked DRAM layers and provides high‑speed temporary storage that enables GPUs to handle multiple concurrent workloads.

Melius analyst Ben Reitzes upgraded Micron to a “buy” rating on Monday and projected roughly 41% upside for the stock over the next 12 months. Micron shares climbed 5.6% on Monday to a record high, bringing the company’s market capitalization close to USD 600 billion after a cumulative gain exceeding 550% over the past year. Reitzes commented that markets will increasingly value the exceptional resilience of profits and demand generated by AI, and he expects Nvidia to increase its investments in storage in the near term. He added that the current cycle is still in its early stages and that storage demand has never been this strong.

SanDisk surged 8.1% on Monday to a new high, having risen more than 3,000% over the past year and pushing its market capitalization above USD 157 billion. The company is scheduled to report quarterly results after U.S. markets close on May 1. Reitzes estimated an additional 36% upside for SanDisk over the coming 12 months. Bernstein analyst Mark Newman, who also rates SanDisk a “buy,” noted that earnings forecasts are being revised sharply upward, driven by very strong memory pricing.

Major global memory manufacturers Micron, Samsung and SK Hynix have redirected substantial portions of their DRAM capacity toward HBM production, creating shortages in general‑purpose memory and contributing to rapid price appreciation. Counterpoint Research data indicate that DRAM revenue has expanded by about 30% quarter‑on‑quarter for two consecutive quarters as a result of rising prices. Those market dynamics are translating into higher costs for consumers: Gartner projects a 17% increase in PC prices this year, and current SSD prices are two to three times higher than they were in December.

SanDisk, a leading global SSD supplier, relies on NAND flash memory that retains data when devices are powered off, and NAND demand is rising alongside AI server storage needs. The market environment is prompting buyers to negotiate long‑term supply agreements of three to five years. SK Hynix and Micron have both indicated that large technology customers are increasingly willing to secure long‑term contracts to ensure memory availability, with Broadcom cited as an example of a company that has locked in supply through 2028. Newman observed that suppliers also favor long‑term deals to stabilize demand when planning capacity expansions, noting that new fabs typically require about two and a half years from groundbreaking to production.

Micron is investing USD 24 billion to scale up its NAND manufacturing in Singapore and is building new large‑scale fabs in New York and Idaho. SK Hynix has broken ground on its first U.S. memory packaging facility in Indiana and is adding new production and packaging capacity in South Korea.

Seagate Technology, a major U.S. manufacturer of consumer hard disk drives, rose 1.64% on Monday to a record high and is scheduled to report results after U.S. markets close on April 29. Last week, SK Hynix reported its strongest quarterly performance to date, with revenue of KRW 52.57 trillion, up 198.1% year‑on‑year, net profit of KRW 40 trillion and an operating margin of 72%. The company attributed the robust results to sustained price increases driven by AI demand and a higher mix of premium products.