The S&P 500, tracked by the SPY exchange-traded fund, rebounded on June 25, 2026, as Micron Technology’s record earnings and strong forward guidance eased investor concerns about the sustainability of artificial intelligence spending and memory chip demand.
Micron reported fiscal third-quarter revenue of $41.46 billion, far exceeding Wall Street’s estimate of $35.69 billion. The memory chipmaker guided fourth-quarter revenue to approximately $50 billion, well above the consensus forecast of $43.24 billion, signaling robust demand for high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI data centers.
The company’s earnings came after a sharp tech-driven selloff the prior week, when investors questioned whether spending on AI infrastructure could justify the valuations of semiconductor stocks. Micron’s blowout results and customer commitments—the company highlighted $22 billion in customer deposits and a $100 billion backlog for specialized AI memory—provided concrete evidence that the AI buildout was real and durable, not speculative.
On the same day Micron’s earnings lifted sentiment, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released May’s Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge. Core PCE, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, increased to 3.4% on a year-over-year basis in May, up from 3.3% in April. The headline PCE figure showed inflation pressures persisting, though the data did not trigger an immediate market downturn—instead, investors interpreted Micron’s earnings as a sign that tech and memory demand could offset broader economic headwinds.
Micron’s adjusted earnings per share reached $25.11, beating the $20.60 consensus estimate by roughly 22%. The company’s gross margin expanded to 84.9%, reflecting the pricing power that memory chipmakers have gained amid constrained supply and surging AI demand. The earnings beat and raised guidance helped restore confidence in the semiconductor sector after weeks of volatility, with investors reassessing whether memory chip supply shortages could persist long enough to sustain elevated prices and margins.
The rebound in SPY and broader equity markets following Micron’s results underscored how dependent market sentiment remains on evidence of real demand for AI infrastructure. When Broadcom and other chipmakers had signaled weaker-than-expected AI revenue in early June, a broad selloff rippled through tech stocks. Micron’s $50 billion forward guidance—more than five times its revenue from a year earlier—provided a counterweight, suggesting that the memory chip shortage and AI data-center buildout would continue to drive growth for suppliers in 2026.
Sources
- CNBC — Micron Q3 2026 earnings report, revenue of $41.46 billion, Q4 guidance of $50 billion, adjusted EPS of $25.11
- investingLive — Micron Q3 results beat estimates with $41.5 billion revenue, Q4 guidance of $50 billion on AI memory surge
- Reuters — Micron tops estimates, highlights $22 billion in customer deposits and strong AI memory demand
- Trading Economics — Core PCE Price Index increased to 3.4% in May from 3.3% in April 2026
- Investing.com — Core PCE Price Index annual change data for May 2026 release on June 25
- 24/7 Wall St. — SPY rebounded 0.54% on June 24 as markets recovered from tech-led pullback ahead of Micron earnings
- Deep Research Global — S&P 500 advanced 0.54% on June 24, recovering from prior chip-driven slump
- Seeking Alpha — Micron remains one of the strongest AI winners of 2026, stock surged 268% year-to-date
