Memory chip stocks have been some of the biggest winners of 2026, and most investors who missed the run assume they are already too late.
Jim Cramer disagrees.
On CNBC’s “Mad Money” this week, the host argued that four memory and storage companies still have room to climb, even after gains that would normally make him cautious.
His reasoning centers on a claim that the industry’s decades-long cycle of shortage followed by collapse may no longer apply
That is a bold position, and it deserves a close look before anyone acts on it.
Why Jim Cramer thinks Micron stock can double again
Cramer’s most striking call was on Micron Technology (MU).
He said the stock can double from here, as long as the artificial intelligence data center buildout keeps going, according to CNBC.
Micron (MU) makes the DRAM and NAND chips that store data inside phones, laptops, and the servers that run AI models.
When AI systems need more memory than suppliers can produce, prices rise, and so do Micron’s profits. That is what’s happening now. Cramer calls Micron more of a growth company than its rivals.
Related: Peter Thiel invests $118 million in surging big tech stock
Last week, Micron stock dropped after South Korean chipmakers sold off. Cramer’s Charitable Trust bought shares during that dip.
The numbers behind his call are real. Micron has gained about 242% in 2026, and its gross margin jumped from 39% to 85% year over year, CNBC reported.
Gross margin is the share of revenue left after production costs, so an increase that big means Micron is keeping far more of every dollar it sells.
The 4 memory chip stocks on Cramer’s buy list
Cramer named four stocks he believes can keep rising, and said it is not too late to own any of them.
Each has already posted a huge increase this year.
Cramer’s memory and storage picks
- Micron (MU): Up about 254% in 2026. His top pick and a Charitable Trust holding.
- SanDisk (SNDK): Up about 653%, one of the year’s best-performing stocks.
- Seagate (STX): Up about 261%, a maker of hard drives and storage systems.
- Western Digital (WDC): Up about 211%, another core storage supplier.
SanDisk stands out even in this group.
The company authorized a $15.5 billion buyback and lifted its gross margin to 85% from 26% a year earlier.
Its shares trade near eight times fiscal 2027 earnings estimates.
Micron shares closed at $1,011.75 on Aug. 17, rising 4.1% and reclaiming the $1,000 mark for the first time since July, according to TradingView.
How AI demand changed the memory chip cycle
The core of Cramer’s argument is that AI has rewritten the rules for this industry. For decades, memory chip prices have moved in a repeating cycle of shortage and oversupply.
Strong demand pushed manufacturers to build new factories, that new capacity created too much supply, and prices, profits, and stock prices then collapsed together. Cramer says AI has broken that loop, at least for now.
More AI Memory Stocks:
- 5-star analyst sets jaw-dropping Micron stock price target for 2026
- Bank of America doubles down on Micron stock price for 2026
- Jim Cramer says the AI data center trade is back, names 6 stocks
The reason is a shortage that is not fading. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has called memory the main limitation holding back data center growth, and Micron’s management agrees.
On its fiscal third-quarter earnings call, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said chip demand keeps running well ahead of supply, and those conditions should last beyond 2027, Yahoo Finance reported.
That is a longer timeline than past cycles offered, and it explains why Cramer is willing to buy after such large gains.
The buyback signal Cramer is watching closely
Cramer pointed to one company behavior as proof the industry has learned from its history: share buybacks.
In past cycles, memory makers poured cash into new factories the moment demand spiked. This time, they are returning money to shareholders instead.
The commitments are large.
Where the cash is going
- SanDisk: $15.5 billion remaining under its buyback authorization.
- Seagate: working through a $5 billion buyback approved last year.
- Western Digital: authorized an additional $4 billion in repurchases this year.
When a company buys back its own stock, fewer shares are left in the market. That means each remaining share represents a bigger portion of the company’s profits, which can push the stock price higher.
Cramer summed up the shift plainly, saying the companies are sending cash to shareholders rather than building risky new capacity.
That discipline matters because overbuilding is exactly what ended every prior boom.
The risks that could break Cramer’s memory stock thesis
Cramer’s case rests on one condition, and he said it out loud: no slowdown in data center spending.
If that condition fails, the entire argument weakens. Investors should consider a few specific risks before buying.
What could go wrong
- A capacity flood: If Samsung or another large rival aggressively expands production, the old supply glut could return and affect prices.
- A pullback in cloud spending: Any unexpected slowdown in data center budgets would remove the demand holding margins high.
- Crowded positioning: These stocks have already run hard, so even a small disappointment can trigger a sharp drop, as the group’s July selloff showed.
Cramer acknowledged the discomfort of buying after such a run, and admitted he is not early. He only argued that he’s not too late.
Retail traders remain split. Sentiment on Stocktwits was bearish for Micron, Western Digital, and Seagate, and bullish for SanDisk, TradingView noted.
What Micron and memory investors should watch next
For readers deciding whether to follow Cramer, the practical question is what to track from here.
The most important signal to watch is data center spending from the large cloud companies. As long as that spending increases, the memory shortage holds, and Cramer’s call stays intact.
Here are the things worth monitoring.
Next steps for investors
- Watch hyperscaler capital budgets: Rising spending from cloud giants supports memory demand; a cut would be the first warning sign.
- Track supply announcements: New factory plans from Samsung or Micron would signal the cycle risk is returning.
- Follow Micron’s next earnings: Management’s guidance on pricing and supply will test whether the shortage is still widening.
None of this makes the stocks a sure investment. Memory remains one of the most volatile corners of the semiconductor market, and much of the AI optimism is already reflected in these prices.
Cramer’s view is that the AI infrastructure opportunity is large enough to justify holding through that volatility.
Whether he is right depends entirely on demand that has not yet slowed, but also has not been guaranteed to continue.
For investors, the decision comes down to how confident you are that AI spending keeps climbing through 2027 and beyond.
