China's homegrown memory chipmaker CXMT Corp. has delivered an exceptional market debut, with shares jumping more than 580% since listing and remaining within 10% of their peak, according to Bloomberg data. The stock's performance has made it the most resilient market debut onshore this quarter, as reported by Bloomberg. As the world's fourth-biggest DRAM producer, CXMT has become a symbol of China's effort to reduce its reliance on foreign technology. The company reached a market value of 3.3 trillion yuan during its blockbuster debut in late July and went on to surpass Hong Kong-listed Tencent Holdings Ltd. to become China's largest listed company by market capitalization.
CXMT has delivered exceptional first-half performance, with revenue expanding to 150.3 billion yuan ($22.4 billion) in the first six months, more than double the sales it generated across all of 2025, according to the latest earnings release. The company posted a profit of 77.6 billion yuan, marking a dramatic turnaround from losses in the previous year. This performance reflects the global constraint in DRAM supplies that CXMT said will continue in the second half. The company attributed its stellar growth to the AI hardware rush, with demand and prices for its products skyrocketing as artificial intelligence and data centers drive unprecedented memory consumption.
The company has significantly ramped up its research and development capabilities to capitalize on the AI boom. Research spending rose 87% to 6.86 billion yuan in the first half, while the research and development team grew 61% year-over-year to nearly 7,500 people. CXMT is developing its next-generation LPDDR6 memory product for smartphones and tablets, which has been delivered to clients for validation and is now on track for mass production. The company plans to use IPO proceeds to fund capacity expansion and catch up with larger rivals, positioning itself as China's best alternative to international suppliers.
Despite its domestic success, CXMT faces significant challenges in the US market. The company was recently blacklisted by the US Department of Defense, a move CXMT said won't impact its day-to-day operations. In a sign of its growing international clout, CXMT is reportedly in talks with Apple Inc. to purchase memory chips for use in Apple devices sold in China, alongside fellow Chinese supplier Yangtze Memory Technologies Co., according to Bloomberg News. These discussions have raised alarms in Washington, with a group of US senators urging Apple to drop its attempt to rely on Chinese suppliers.
Despite the surge, CXMT still trades at a significant discount to global peers, with shares closing at 59.12 yuan on Thursday. According to Goldman Sachs analysis, the stock trades at about 10 times estimated 2027 earnings, representing a "significant discount to global peers." The multiple is based on forecasts for net income to more than double to 361 billion yuan in 2027 from an estimated 161 billion yuan this year. Goldman Sachs has set a Street-high price target of 129 yuan for the stock, as the company benefits from the same acute memory shortage that's fired up valuations of Samsung Electronics Co., SK Hynix Inc., and Micron Technology Inc.
