rewrite this title Memory ‘hunger game’ begins. Here’s what you need to know By Investing.com

Investing.com — JPMorgan analysts say a new “memory-hungry trend” is driving a multi-year upcycle in the global memory market, fuelled by soaring datacenter compute demand. 

“We raise our memory TAM by 6%-24% and introduce FY27E estimates where we expect memory TAM to reach ~$300bn, primarily driven by HBM4E to suit 4x Rubin Ultra content growth,” the firm wrote.

JPMorgan sees a four-year run of price strength across DRAM. “We expect DRAM blended pricing to grow in the next two years, recording a four-year DRAM pricing upcycle from 24-27E, an unprecedented DRAM pricing cycle and a higher trough ASP,” analysts said. 

They estimate HBM will account for 43% of DRAM value in 2027, helping smooth volatility.

High-bandwidth memory remains at the centre of the thesis. “Blended HBM ASP is unlikely to drop in 26E; HBM TAM to reaccelerate in 27E to reach $90bn,” JPMorgan noted, highlighting a tight supply-demand balance. 

The firm expects to lead in HBM4 qualification, with and competing for less than 40% of the wallet share.

NAND is also said to show signs of strength after underinvestment and hard-disk shortages. 

“We expect NAND prices to have further room to grow and forecast blended ASP to grow 7% in FY26E,” the analysts wrote.

On capital spending, JPMorgan projects memory capex will rise 7-12% in 2026-27 as suppliers prioritise DRAM amid strong HBM economics. 

While near-term valuations look stretched, JPMorgan said: “We remain constructive on memory names” and reiterated a preference for SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics and Micron.