SanDisk Slips as AI Spending Doubts and Chinese Chip Progress Rattle Memory Stocks

SanDisk slid 3% to EUR 1,290, now 37% below its 52-week high, as CXMT DRAM news and Broadcom's casino remark pressured memory stocks.

SanDisk shares came under renewed pressure on Wednesday, part of a sector-wide retreat that has left investors questioning whether the massive sums being poured into artificial intelligence infrastructure will ever generate the returns to justify them.

The stock traded at EUR 1,290.00, down 3.0% on the day, extending a slump that has now pushed it 37% below its 52-week high. Wednesday's decline followed a 4.3% drop in the prior session, when the shares closed at EUR 1,330.00, according to Reuters. The stock now sits 4.9% beneath its 50-day moving average.

Broadcom Chief's Casino Remark Fuels the Gloom

Sentiment across the semiconductor complex has been eroding for several sessions, and comments from Broadcom CEO Hock Tan did little to help. Tan likened speculation surrounding the AI market to gambling in a casino, a remark that amplified existing doubts about the durability of technology spending.

The unease has been building for days. US outlet Axios reported on a sustained weak patch for chip stocks, with the sector index SOX notching its fifth consecutive losing session. A portfolio manager cited by Reuters described a broad push among market participants to lock in profits after the sector's strong run in recent months.

CXMT Headlines Hit the Whole Memory Complex

Adding to the pressure were reports of technological advances at China's ChangXin Memory Technologies. The company announced progress on a next-generation DRAM design on Monday and said it aims to target server DDR5 products by the end of 2026. The disclosure triggered a broad selloff in memory equities that swept up SanDisk along with its peers.

The selling, however, appears to have been indiscriminate. CXMT's developments concern DRAM memory chips, whereas SanDisk's operating business centers on NAND flash. The Chinese company is not classified in the reports as a direct product competitor to SanDisk. Even so, fears of intensifying competition across the semiconductor landscape prompted investors to dump memory names across the board.

NAND Pricing and Inventory Concerns Add to the Mix

Beyond the macro and competitive headlines, company-specific issues have come to the fore for SanDisk. Investors are focused on softening prices for NAND flash memory and potential inventory-related headwinds, according to media reports. Wednesday's weakness followed notable selling pressure a day earlier in memory names including SanDisk and sector peer Micron.

Market participants remain cautious as long as no reliable signals of a bottom in memory prices emerge. The widening gap to the 52-week high reflects how much ground the stock has surrendered during the sector's recent turbulence.

October 29 Earnings Call in Focus

Concrete insight into the company's actual performance is now less than two weeks away. SanDisk has scheduled a conference call to discuss results for the first quarter of fiscal 2027 for October 29, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. Pacific time.

Earlier, on October 6, the company filed its definitive proxy materials and annual report with US securities regulators. Until the quarterly report lands, the stock's direction is likely to be dictated largely by the broader mood in the chip sector and the ongoing debate over the earnings power of global technology spending. How resilient NAND demand proves to be in the current environment should become clearer when the numbers arrive.