Micron Technology, Inc. vs United Microelectronics Corporation, two Semiconductors stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Neither balance sheet carries meaningful debt, which for two capital-intensive chip manufacturers is the tell that both remember what downturns do to levered fabs. From the same defensive posture, opposite fortunes: Micron's memory business is printing an 80.4% operating margin at cycle peak, while UMC's trailing-edge foundry earns 22% in a pricing trough, with a 213.2 times multiple made of compressed earnings rather than optimism. Micron trades at 25.6 times its windfall. Returns on assets run 37.6% against 8.7%. The same industry, the same conservatism, and a cycle that has simply chosen one of them this year; the prices mostly agree the choosing will not last.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | MU | UMC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1129.73 | $25.58 |
| Market cap | $1.29T | $311.4B |
| Sector | Semiconductors | Semiconductors |
| Stage | Growth | Growth |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +35.4% | — |
| P/E | 25.6 | 213.2 |
| P/B | 12.84 | 27.92 |
| P/S | 14.33 | 43.56 |
| EV/EBITDA | 18.6 | 195.8 |
| Revenue growth | +161.2% | +8.9% |
| Gross margin | 84.6% | 32.3% |
| Operating margin | 80.4% | 22.0% |
| Net margin | 55.9% | 20.8% |
| Return on equity | 50.1% | 13.3% |
| Return on assets | 37.6% | 8.7% |
| Return on invested capital | 46.2% | 12.0% |
| FCF yield | 2.0% | 0.1% |
| Dividend yield | 0.0% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.01 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 3.42 | 2.45 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 8.90 | 6.96 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 6 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.