Since the beginning of 2026, SanDisk (SNDK), a global leader in SSD storage, has seen its cumulative stock price increase exceed 300%, following a staggering 580% surge throughout all of 2025. This makes it an undeniable “super-star stock” within the global AI computing infrastructure theme.
This dramatic rally is not driven by a single factor but rather by a convergence of “passive buying from index inclusion” and a “fundamental revaluation driven by a storage super-cycle.” On one hand, Nasdaq has announced that SanDisk will replace Atlassian in the Nasdaq 100 Index effective before the market opens on April 20. This will mechanically trigger buying from ETFs and passive funds tracking the index, amplifying short-term price momentum. On the other hand, Wall Street has been continuously raising its price targets for SanDisk based on the “storage super-cycle” thesis: Evercore ISI initiated coverage with a $1,200 price target and a bull-case scenario of up to $2,600, Citigroup raised its target to $980, and Jefferies significantly increased its target to $1,000. These assessments are fundamentally betting on explosive growth in enterprise DRAM/NAND storage demand driven by the AI data center construction boom.
According to the latest survey from TrendForce, in the second quarter of 2026, as DRAM manufacturers actively shift capacity towards HBM and server applications, general-purpose DRAM contract prices are expected to increase another 58% to 63% quarter-over-quarter. The NAND Flash market continues to be dominated by AI and data center demand, with overall contract prices projected to rise sharply by 70% to 75% quarter-over-quarter in Q2, building on a nearly 100% increase in Q1. NAND Flash is precisely the core storage medium for major SSD manufacturers like SanDisk.
Whether it’s Google’s TPU computing clusters or NVIDIA’s AI GPU clusters, neither can function without HBM storage systems. Furthermore, tech giants like Google and OpenAI, in their rush to build or expand AI data centers, must also purchase server-grade DDR5 memory and enterprise-grade high-performance SSD solutions on a large scale. SanDisk, with its long-term focus on high-performance enterprise SSDs (eSSDs), together with memory chip original equipment manufacturers like Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Micron Technology, is benefiting from the “super dividend” brought by AI infrastructure development.
Wall Street investment bank Evercore ISI initiated coverage of SanDisk on Monday, giving it an “Outperform” rating and setting a Wall Street-high price target of $1,200, with a bull-case scenario reaching as high as $2,600. Based on SanDisk’s closing price of $952.50 on April 13, the $1,200 target implies approximately 26% upside.
Evercore’s analyst team stated that SanDisk benefits from one of the most attractive areas within AI computing infrastructure—data storage. Demand in this sector is growing exponentially, while supply is expected to remain extremely tight at least through 2028. Although market concerns about peaking NAND prices persist, this cycle is structurally tighter and more sustainable, driven by seemingly insatiable demand from the AI data center construction boom. Evercore also noted that increased exposure to enterprise and large-scale AI cloud computing businesses will provide SanDisk with a better growth trajectory and a more diversified business structure. Currently, large data center customers account for less than 15% of SanDisk’s total sales, and the firm expects this segment’s growth to continue accelerating.
SanDisk is scheduled to release its fiscal Q3 2026 earnings on April 30 (Eastern Time). The market consensus expects revenue of $4.65 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $14.23.
