Micron Technology, Inc. (MU): Navigating U.S.-China Semiconductor Restrictions Amid AI Growth

We recently compiled a list of the Top 10 AI News Updates This Weekend. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) stands against the other AI stocks.

According to JP Morgan, the S&P will propel to new heights this New Year, and artificial intelligence is one of the reasons why. Besides AI, Strategist Dubravko Lakos-Bujas pointed to a resilient economy and the possibility of easier industry regulations as reasons for the boost, setting 6,500 as his 2025 target for the broad market index.

The U.S. will remain “the global growth engine with the business cycle in expansion, a healthy labor market, broadening of AI-related capital spending, and prospect of stronger capital market and deal activity”.

– Lakos-Bujas.

READ NOW: 15 Buzzing AI Stocks Making Headlines and 15 AI Stocks to Watch: News and Analyst Ratings 

US equities have already enjoyed a strong 2024, up 26% year to date due to enthusiasm around AI and a resilient economy. A tighter labor market, record wealth, and “potentially lower energy prices” are also reasons to celebrate. Investors have been happy about Donald Trump’s win as well, noted Lakos-Bujas, fueling their expectations of lower taxes and deregulation across industries.

“Heightened geopolitical uncertainty and the evolving policy agenda are introducing unusual complexity to the outlook, but opportunities are likely to outweigh risks. The benefit of deregulation and a more business-friendly environment are likely underestimated along with potential for unlocking productivity gains and capital deployment”.

In other news, artificial intelligence is stepping in to keep the Thanksgiving cheer alive, making sure holiday staples stay abundant and affordable for years to come.

“Cranberry production is challenging … [and] growers are really concerned about heat stress events”.

– Dr. Jeffrey Neyhart

Artificial intelligence is helping by speeding up the process of identifying heat-resistant varieties for cranberries. Researchers like Dr. Neyhart are using AI to save years of work and improve crop resilience in the face of climate change.

For this article, we selected AI stocks by going through news articles, stock analysis, and press releases. These stocks are also popular among hedge funds.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

A close-up view of a computer motherboard with integrated semiconductor chips.

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 107

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU), a US-based innovative memory and storage solutions provider, supports the development of artificial intelligence and generative AI applications.

On November 28th, Bloomberg reported that the Biden administration is weighing additional curbs on sales of semiconductor equipment and AI memory chips to China. The measures, aiming to curb Beijing’s tech advancements, are less strict than previously discussed. The restrictions could be announced next week, impacting companies in the space such as Micron. Back in 2023, China’s cyberspace regulator said that U.S. memory chipmaker Micron Technology products had failed its network security review and it would bar operators of key infrastructure from buying from the company, a move perceived as a response to US sanctions on China’s semiconductor industry.

Overall MU ranks 3rd on our list of the trending AI stocks this weekend. While we acknowledge the potential of MU as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than MU but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.