{"id":30424,"date":"2026-05-07T02:22:35","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T02:22:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/30424\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T02:22:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T02:22:35","slug":"meet-the-artificial-intelligence-ai-infrastructure-stock-crushing-micron-technology-in-2026-its-red-hot-earnings-growth-could-send-it-even-higher-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/30424\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Infrastructure Stock Crushing Micron Technology in 2026. Its Red-Hot Earnings Growth Could Send It Even Higher"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Key Points<\/p>\n<p>Seagate Technology&#8217;s latest results and guidance were very encouraging.<\/p>\n<p>The stock is undervalued when its terrific earnings growth potential is considered.<\/p>\n<p>Seagate stock looks poised to deliver further gains over the next few years.<\/p>\n<p>Micron Technology has been one of the hottest stocks on the market this year. Shares of the memory specialist have surged an incredible 90% in 2026 so far, driven by surging demand for memory chips used in artificial intelligence (AI) data centers.<\/p>\n<p>However, Seagate Technology(NASDAQ: STX) has overshadowed the red-hot rally in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/investing\/how-to-invest\/stocks\/how-to-invest-in-micron-technology-stock\/?utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Micron stock<\/a>, posting outstanding gains of 164% this year. Seagate is another important player in the AI infrastructure ecosystem, manufacturing data storage solutions, including hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs).<\/p>\n<p>Will AI create the world&#8217;s first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an &#8220;Indispensable Monopoly&#8221; providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. <a href=\"https:\/\/api.fool.com\/infotron\/infotrack\/click?apikey=35527423-a535-4519-a07f-20014582e03e&amp;impression=bfc13ff6-37f8-4dc8-bd3c-3ed8764da2f5&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fool.com%2Fmms%2Fmark%2Fa-sa-ai-boom-nvidias%3Faid%3D10891%26source%3Disaediica0000068%26ftm_cam%3Dsa-ai-boom%26ftm_veh%3Dtop_incontent_pitch_feed_partner%26ftm_pit%3D18906&amp;utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Continue \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The company&#8217;s storage products are used in a variety of applications, ranging from computers to portable storage devices to data centers. However, AI data centers have become the largest consumers of HDDs and SSDs lately, as they need to store large amounts of data for training AI models and running inference applications.<\/p>\n<p>The AI data center-fueled demand has been the biggest catalyst for Seagate stock, leading to tremendous growth in revenue and earnings. Let&#8217;s take a closer look at the company&#8217;s latest quarterly report and check why this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/investing\/stock-market\/market-sectors\/information-technology\/ai-stocks\/?utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">AI stock<\/a> is built for more upside.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" alt=\"Person sitting in front of a computer screen with charts and writing using a pen.\" src=\"https:\/\/barchart-news-media-prod.aws.barchart.com\/FC\/9d8ae2183fc6bc0b25e17a3e3fe9d948\/%3Furl%3Dhttps%253a%252f%252fg.foolcdn.com%252feditorial%252fimages%252f868563%252fperson-smiling-computer-charts.jpg%26amp%3Bw%3D700\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"caption\">Image source: Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>Seagate&#8217;s outstanding results and guidance point toward better times<\/p>\n<p>Seagate released its fiscal 2026 third-quarter results (for the three months ended April 3) on April 28. The company crushed expectations, and the guidance was also well above consensus estimates.<\/p>\n<p>Revenue jumped 44% year over year to $3.11 billion. The company&#8217;s earnings, however, shot up by 116% year over year, driven by a huge improvement in its operating margin. Seagate capitalized on rising prices of storage products it sells. The overwhelming demand for digital storage solutions means that cloud computing companies and hyperscalers need to act quickly to secure their share of the available supply.<\/p>\n<p>This has put Seagate in a solid position to command premium pricing. In fact, Seagate notes that it has already struck supply agreements with &#8220;nearly all major cloud and hyperscale customers&#8221; for its high-capacity storage products for calendar 2027. Even better, Seagate has started negotiating supply contracts for calendar 2028 and beyond.<\/p>\n<p>With data centers producing 80% of Seagate&#8217;s revenue last quarter, the long-term supply agreements that the company is putting in place with customers suggest that its phenomenal growth is sustainable. Moreover, management&#8217;s comments on the latest <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/earnings\/call-transcripts\/2026\/04\/28\/seagate-stx-q3-2026-earnings-transcript\/?utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">earnings call<\/a> suggest it could continue to raise prices on new contracts it signs to capitalize on the shortage of HDDs and SSDs, which could persist until the end of the decade as AI server shipments increase.<\/p>\n<p>The size of the AI server market could increase by almost sixfold between 2024 and 2030, according to a third-party report. These servers will require more data storage. Not surprisingly, Fortune Business Insights estimates that the global data storage market could grow from $300 billion in 2026 to almost $985 billion in 2034 to support the large datasets needed for generative AI applications.<\/p>\n<p>All this suggests that Seagate is well placed to capitalize on a secular growth opportunity that could last for years. Moreover, a closer look at Seagate&#8217;s guidance makes it clear that the earnings surge that it is witnessing could continue in the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n<p>Seagate expects adjusted earnings of $5 per share in the current quarter at the midpoint of its guidance range. That&#8217;s nearly double the year-ago period&#8217;s earnings of $2.59 per share. However, Seagate has the potential to outperform that expectation given the favorable demand-supply dynamics it enjoys.<\/p>\n<p>But what about the valuation?<\/p>\n<p>Seagate shares are trading at 69 times trailing earnings right now. That&#8217;s expensive compared to the tech-focused Nasdaq-100 index&#8217;s earnings multiple of 34. However, that premium is justified by the market-beating earnings growth that Seagate is clocking.<\/p>\n<p>The stock has a price\/earnings-to-growth ratio (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/terms\/p\/peg-ratio\/?utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">PEG ratio<\/a>) of 0.5, according to Yahoo! Finance. This metric is calculated by dividing a company&#8217;s trailing earnings multiple by its projected annual earnings growth over the next five years. A reading below 1 indicates that a stock is undervalued given the earnings growth it could deliver. Also, analysts have boosted their earnings growth expectations from Seagate following its latest report.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ycharts.com\/companies\/STX\/chart\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"STX EPS Estimates for Current Fiscal Year Chart\" src=\"https:\/\/barchart-news-media-prod.aws.barchart.com\/FC\/9d8ae2183fc6bc0b25e17a3e3fe9d948\/%3Furl%3Dhttps%253a%252f%252fmedia.ycharts.com%252fcharts%252f223c89a2729f049c0b9997caf60f6880.png%26amp%3Bw%3D700\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ycharts.com\/companies\/STX\/eps_est_0y\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">STX EPS Estimates for Current Fiscal Year<\/a> data by <a href=\"https:\/\/ycharts.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">YCharts<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Assuming its earnings indeed reach $39.17 after a couple of fiscal years, and it trades at 34 times earnings at that time (in line with the Nasdaq-100 index&#8217;s average earnings multiple), this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/investing\/stock-market\/market-sectors\/information-technology\/?utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">tech stock<\/a> could reach $1,332. That&#8217;s a potential gain of 77% from current levels, suggesting that investors can still buy Seagate following its stunning surge, as it has the potential to deliver more gains.<\/p>\n<p>Should you buy stock in Seagate Technology Plc right now?<\/p>\n<p>Before you buy stock in Seagate Technology Plc, consider this:<\/p>\n<p>The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the <a href=\"https:\/\/api.fool.com\/infotron\/infotrack\/click?apikey=35527423-a535-4519-a07f-20014582e03e&amp;impression=d740724a-0005-4e3d-a8eb-5e35659d2285&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fool.com%2Fmms%2Fmark%2Fe-sa-bbn-dyn-headline%3Faid%3D11234%26source%3Disaeditxt0001178%26company%3DSeagate%2520Technology%2520Plc%26ftm_cam%3Dsa-bbn-evergreen%26ftm_veh%3Darticle_pitch_feed_partners%26ftm_pit%3D18725&amp;utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">10 best stocks<\/a> for investors to buy now\u2026 and Seagate Technology Plc wasn\u2019t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.<\/p>\n<p>Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004&#8230; if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you\u2019d have $473,985!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005&#8230; if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you\u2019d have $1,204,650!*<\/p>\n<p>Now, it\u2019s worth noting Stock Advisor\u2019s total average return is 950% \u2014 a market-crushing outperformance compared to 203% for the S&amp;P 500. Don&#8217;t miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"ticker_pitch\" href=\"https:\/\/api.fool.com\/infotron\/infotrack\/click?apikey=35527423-a535-4519-a07f-20014582e03e&amp;impression=d740724a-0005-4e3d-a8eb-5e35659d2285&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fool.com%2Fmms%2Fmark%2Fe-sa-bbn-dyn-headline%3Faid%3D11234%26source%3Disaeditxt0001178%26company%3DSeagate%2520Technology%2520Plc%26ftm_cam%3Dsa-bbn-evergreen%26ftm_pit%3D18725%26ftm_veh%3Darticle_pitch_feed_partners%26company%3DSeagate%2520Technology%2520Plc&amp;utm_source=globeandmail&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;referring_guid=57e539d4-7ea3-4b0f-b5d1-15119e40d413\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">See the 10 stocks \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"disclaimer\" style=\"font-size: 0.65rem; color: #767676; margin-top: 5px; text-align: left;\">*Stock Advisor returns as of May 6, 2026. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/author\/2139\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Harsh Chauhan<\/a> has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Micron Technology. The Motley Fool has a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/legal\/fool-disclosure-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">disclosure policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" style=\"display:none;\" referrerpolicy=\"unsafe-url\" src=\"https:\/\/barchart-news-media-prod.aws.barchart.com\/FC\/9d8ae2183fc6bc0b25e17a3e3fe9d948\/pixel%3Fslug%3Dmotleyfoolgm-2026-5-6-meet-the-artificial-intelligence-ai-infrastructure-stock-crushing-micron-technology-in-2026-its-red-hot-earnings-growth-could-send-it-even-higher\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Key Points Seagate Technology&#8217;s latest results and guidance were very encouraging. The stock is undervalued when its terrific&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30425,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[24,25,1320,1317,1316,1319,1318,1321,1506,144,1310],"class_list":{"0":"post-30424","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ai","8":"tag-ai","9":"tag-artificial-intelligence","10":"tag-futures","11":"tag-index-market-quote","12":"tag-index-market-quotes","13":"tag-index-market-symbol","14":"tag-index-market-symbols","15":"tag-indices","16":"tag-nvda","17":"tag-nvidia-corp","18":"tag-the-globe-and-mail"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30424","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30424"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30424\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30424"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30424"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30424"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}