MU vs QCOM Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Micron and Qualcomm are both semiconductor companies but operate in very different corners of the industry: Micron makes memory chips that are essential, price-volatile commodities increasingly driven by AI server demand, while Qualcomm makes mobile processors and licenses wireless technology, with a more mature, slower-growing core smartphone market but expanding automotive and edge-AI opportunities.
Micron offers higher-beta exposure to the AI infrastructure buildout through HBM demand, with more cyclicality and pricing volatility. Qualcomm offers a more stable, royalty-supported business with steadier cash flow but a more mature core market. Consider your tolerance for memory-cycle volatility versus a slower, more diversified mobile-and-automotive growth story.
MU holds the edge across 5 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. MU leads on both 1-year return (+501.46%) and forward P/E quality (6.02x vs 16.09x for QCOM), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. MU leads on both revenue growth (345.70%) and operating margin (80.37%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for MU (+62.23%) than for QCOM (+17.61%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want direct exposure to AI infrastructure demand through the memory supply chain
- Are comfortable with the cyclicality of memory pricing in exchange for potential upside during upcycles
- Believe HBM capacity constraints will keep pricing favorable for memory makers over the medium term
- Can tolerate higher earnings volatility for potentially larger swings in stock performance
- Prefer a more stable business with high-margin licensing revenue supporting earnings
- Want diversified exposure across smartphones, automotive, and edge-AI chips rather than a single cyclical market
- Value a company with a long history of returning capital to shareholders
- Are comfortable with slower core smartphone market growth in exchange for lower volatility
| Metric | MU | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 96.0 | 51.6 |
| AI ranki | #1 | #447 |
| Latest closei | $1,015.80 | $177.72 |
| 1M returni | +8.40% | +9.76% |
| 6M returni | +128.64% | +35.37% |
| 1Y returni | +501.46% | +5.70% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | MU | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $60.15K (+501.5%) started 2025-09-18 | $10.57K (+5.7%) started 2025-09-18 |
| 5Y ago | $146.92K (+1369.2%) started 2021-09-20 | $15.64K (+56.4%) started 2021-09-20 |
| 10Y ago | $627.28K (+6172.8%) started 2016-09-19 | $46.77K (+367.7%) started 2016-09-19 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | MU | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $1.05T | $175.36B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 21.10 | 18.76 |
| Forward P/Ei | 6.02 | 16.09 |
| Price/Salesi | 3.87 | 3.88 |
| EV/Revenuei | 11.45 | 4.07 |
| Analyst targeti | $1,513.41 | $193.10 |
| Target upsidei | +62.23% | +17.61% |
| Metric | MU | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 345.70% | -4.00% |
| Earnings growthi | 1368.50% | -23.00% |
| EPS growthi | +1368.50% | -23.00% |
| FCF margini | +8.46% | +23.24% |
| Operating margini | 80.37% | 18.53% |
| Profit margini | 55.91% | 21.01% |
| ROIC proxyi | 66.64% | 33.75% |
| Return on equityi | 66.64% | 33.75% |
| Dividend yieldi | 0.06% | 2.23% |
| Payout ratioi | 1.12% | 41.03% |
| Dividend growth streaki | No increase yet | No increase yet |
| Betai | 2.21 | 1.66 |
| Debt/equityi | 6.33 | 55.21 |
| Current ratioi | 3.42 | 2.02 |
| Quick ratioi | 2.93 | 1.14 |
Over the past year, MU and QCOM have moved weakly in the same direction (correlation of 0.38), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | MU | QCOM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +501.46% | +5.70% |
| CAGRi | +502.20% | +5.71% | |
| Volatilityi | 81.48% | 53.05% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 2.56 | 0.28 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 4.32 | 0.43 | |
| Max drawdowni | 39.10% | 41.20% | |
| Current drawdowni | 16.30% | 29.20% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 9.19% | 18.32% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 13.17% | 21.85% | |
| Max daily dropi | 13.25% | 11.46% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 22.98% | 23.52% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +1335.75% | +44.50% |
| CAGRi | +70.47% | +7.65% | |
| Volatilityi | 56.77% | 42.37% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 1.15 | 0.28 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.79 | 0.40 | |
| Max drawdowni | 57.63% | 44.50% | |
| Current drawdowni | 16.30% | 29.20% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 23.24% | 25.45% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 27.78% | 28.01% | |
| Max daily dropi | 16.18% | 11.46% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 26.73% | 23.52% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +6030.10% | +258.56% |
| CAGRi | +50.94% | +13.62% | |
| Volatilityi | 51.63% | 39.84% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.97 | 0.41 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.47 | 0.60 | |
| Max drawdowni | 57.63% | 44.50% | |
| Current drawdowni | 16.30% | 29.20% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 20.48% | 19.40% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 25.10% | 22.75% | |
| Max daily dropi | 19.82% | 14.95% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 27.76% | 23.52% |
| Category | MU | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Micron Technology, Inc. | Qualcomm Incorporated |
| Sector | Technology | Technology |
| Industry | Semiconductors | Semiconductors |
| Core business | Manufactures memory and storage chips (DRAM and NAND), including high-bandwidth memory (HBM) that is a critical, capacity-constrained component in AI accelerators. | Designs mobile chipsets (Snapdragon) and licenses wireless patents, with growing diversification into automotive, IoT, and on-device AI processing (edge AI) chips. |
| Investor focus | HBM demand and pricing tied to AI server buildouts, DRAM/NAND pricing cycle, and capital expenditure for capacity expansion. | Smartphone chipset market share and pricing, licensing revenue stability, and diversification into automotive and edge-AI chip revenue. |
- HBM has become a critical bottleneck component for AI GPUs, giving Micron pricing power in a historically commoditized memory market
- Memory pricing upcycles can produce outsized earnings growth given the industry's high operating leverage
- Diversified end markets across data center, mobile, PC, and automotive memory
- Dominant position in premium Android smartphone chipsets with strong technology leadership
- High-margin licensing business provides a stable royalty revenue stream independent of chip volumes
- Growing automotive and IoT chip business diversifies revenue beyond smartphones
- Memory is a historically cyclical, commodity-like industry prone to sharp pricing downturns
- Heavy capital expenditure requirements to expand HBM and leading-edge DRAM capacity
- Competition from Samsung and SK Hynix in the HBM market
- Smartphone unit growth has slowed globally, capping the core handset chipset business
- Customer concentration risk, including any potential loss of chipset business from major Android OEMs or Apple modem transitions
- Licensing revenue subject to periodic legal and regulatory disputes
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