As memory equipment-related capital expenditure is expected to be higher than expected, Morgan Stanley (by Morgan Stanley) has decided to increase investment evaluation and target prices of semiconductor etching machines manufacturer Lam Research Corp. and semiconductor equipment large manufacturers Applied Materials.

According to foreign information reports such as Barron’s, MarketWatch, Seeking Alpha, etc., Morgan Stanley analyst Shane Brett raised the evaluation of material investment from "neutral rights" to "plug", and the target price was revised from $172 to $209. Morgan Stanley also raised its Colin Investment Review from "reduced" to "neutral rights", and its target price was revised from $92 to $125.

Colin reported a 4.16% slump on the 22nd, closing at $132.20, setting a record high in history, and has continued to rise on the 14th trading day; it has risen by 83.03% so far this year. Dow Jones Market Data statistics show that Colin's consecutive days have reached record highs, with a surge of up to 36.3% during this period.

The price rose 5.48% at the same time and closed at US$200.52, reaching a new closing high since October 14, 2024, and has continued to rise on the sixth trading day; it has risen by 23.3% so far this year.

Morgan Stanley reported that the improvement in memory wafer fab equipment (WFE) market conditions are the main reason for the securities decision to make adjustments. With the stakes in the price, a super-large cloud service provider (hyperscaler) has placed a large order, "the memory end market begins to turn positive."

Morbid Morgan Stanley believes that the capital expenditures related to memory equipment in 2026 and 2027 may be better than expected, and Colin and Essay are expected to benefit from it. Morgan Stanley reported that Colin's performance in 2025 and 2026 should be better than the overall WFE market, while competitors show discounts, which means that their risk compensation is biased above.

However, not all semiconductor equipment stocks are looking at it. Morgan Stanley has lowered investment ratings from "coded" to "neutral rights", but the target price has been revised up from $927 to $1,093. Although Kelei's performance in 2025 and 2026 will also be better than the overall WFE market, especially when the company is highly exposed to advanced logical IC solutions, the stock price has long reflected this favorable price.

Morgan Stanley pointed out that Kelei's stock is currently about 30% more than Colin and the price is above 30%.

It is worth noting that Micron Technology Inc., a major US memory manufacturer, will announce its financial report after the US stock market on the 23rd. FactSet statistics show that analysts generally predict that Micron's capital expenditure in 2026 will reach US$16.8 billion. Mizuho analyst Jordan Klein complained that if Micron's actual capital expenditure was not as good as expected, the stock price might be pulled back.

Extended reading: Micron is about to announce financial reports, investors look forward to surpassing analyst forecasts in the tenth quarter