China's ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) has posted 874% revenue growth in the first half of 2026, closing in on Micron's profitability just a month after its Shanghai IPO. The company now holds an 11% global DRAM market share and is preparing to enter the high-bandwidth memory market Micron depends on for AI growth.
CXMT's Shanghai debut reached a $487 billion market capitalization after its stock ran up 466% in a single day, and the IPO raised $8.6 billion to fund production expansion. Micron stock reacted the opposite way, dropping 9% on CXMT's IPO day and falling another 10% the next day.
CXMT's earnings close the gap
CXMT reported its first-half 2026 earnings last week. As Reuters reports, the company grew revenue 874% year over year to 150.3 billion yuan ($22.4 billion), with net profit of 77.6 billion yuan ($11.5 billion). That works out to a 51.6% net profit margin, narrower than the 63% margin Micron earned over the same period, per data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, but closing quickly — as recently as last year, CXMT's net margin was negative.
CXMT's sales growth rate also outclasses Micron's, which grew revenue 203% over the same period — a factor of four behind CXMT. That gap suggests CXMT is pricing well below Micron while still turning a growing profit, and taking market share from rivals in the process.
A widening DRAM footprint
CXMT's market capitalization now stands at $582.5 billion, up 20% over the past month on top of its IPO-day gains. According to The Wall Street Journal, the company has become the world's fourth-largest DRAM manufacturer, holding an 11% global market share versus Micron's 25%, behind Samsung at 39% and SK Hynix at 26%. The Journal estimates CXMT will grow its share to 15% by 2030.
According to the Journal, CXMT still trails Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron by two or three generations in DRAM technology, so investors should expect the company to first gain ground in low-end DRAM for mobile devices before challenging Micron directly. That direct challenge is coming, though: as CNBC has reported, beginning at the end of 2026, CXMT will produce stacked "high bandwidth memory" chips used in artificial intelligence systems, a market that is currently a key growth driver for Micron.
Source: The Motley Fool
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