Lazard Capital Markets analyst Daniel Amir wrote in a research note he expects Micron will post fiscal fourth-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street's average forecast. Micron is slated to report Oct. 2.

"We expect the highlight of the call to be the profitability in the NAND segment, which is a milestone for the company," Amir said.

NAND is a type of flash memory used in digital music players and other consumer devices to store data.

Micron, based in Boise, Idaho, should report a loss per share of 12 cents and revenue of $1.46 billion, wrote Amir. That compares with consensus expectations for a per-share loss of 23 cents on revenue of $1.39 billion.

Amir also expects Micron to give an update on its progress in separating its image sensor business -- devices used in digital cameras -- from the rest of the company. He added that he expects that business unit will be spun out in the first half of next year, which could boost the stock.

However, Micron's business is still heavily reliant on dynamic random-access memory, or DRAM chips, the most widely used memory microchips in the computer industry. That, Amir wrote, could dampen future profitability, because the current DRAM market "remains challenging."

Shares of Micron rose 68 cents, or 6.3 percent, to $11.43 in afternoon trade. Micron shares have declined 39 percent this year, compared with an 8 percent increase in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, based on Wednesday's closing prices.

By: DocMemory
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