David Einhorn, president of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLRE), has turned bullish on Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU). Sources reported Einhorn gave Micron the thumbs up in a presentation at the Robin Hood Investors Conference in New York City on November 21th, and he confirmed it in an interview on CNBC later in the day.
Einhorn had not disclosed stakes in Micron
As of Sept. 30, Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (NASDAQ:GLRE) had not disclosed any stake in Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU). Micron was up over 5% during trading Thursday, continuing its scintillating 250% increase over the last 12 months.
The analysts at Summit Research continue to be bullish on Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU), and currently have a price target of $25 on the equity. They see MU in an ideal position in both the DRAM and NAND markets and expect demand to exceed supply in both markets through 2014. Gross margins on all major products are expected to remain high, in some cases exceeding 50%.
They also mention risks to the stock include significant depreciation of the yen and that the continued enmity between Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:005930) could end at any time, likely meaning a cross-licensing agreement which would put Apple back in the driver’s seat again.
Analysts at Susquehanna Research are less sanguine on Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU). They currently hold the equity at a Neutral rating, and suggest a $14 to $18 price range is likely over the next few months. They argue the integration of Elpida remains a big challenge for 2014, and that long-term NAND growth is also a question mark for MU, especially given that Micron is not participating in the high-growth embedded market. Susquehanna is, however, slightly raising its CY13/CY14 earnings estimates for Micron from $0.72/$2.00 to $0.89/$2.32.
Einhorn appeared on CNBC later on Thursday and updated his short and long investment positions. He is still a big believer in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and continues to invest in gold as a macroeconomic hedge. He also mentioned that he still holds short positions in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG), The St. Joe Company (NYSE:JOE) Company and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ:GMCR).
