Micron shares will thrive this year as its diversified customer base allows to ride out any downturn in the memory chip market, according to one Wall Street firm.
RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage on Micron shares with an outperform rating, also citing the memory industry's consolidation to just a few players.
"Our bullish bias on Micron is predicated not on there being no more cycle but rather on our belief that the cycle(s) going forward will be more muted and less volatile," analyst Amit Daryanani said in a note to clients Wednesday. "Micron offers a unique way for investors to gain exposure to DRAM and NAND markets at what we view as attractive valuations."
Daryanani started his price target for Micron shares at $80, representing 48 percent upside to Tuesday's close.
The company's shares closed up 4.6 percent Wednesday after the report. Shares of Micron are up 31 percent this year through Tuesday versus the S&P 500's 1 percent return.
Daryanani said the number of memory makers shrunk to three from 15 in 1995.
"We think consolidation has resulted in a more rational pricing environment, with MU, Samsung, and SK Hynix having no desire to change the Goldilocks scenario," he said.
Daryanani noted that in 2007, the PC industry represented about 42 percent of the memory market versus the 16 percent today. Servers and other markets now generate nearly 50 percent of current memory demand, according to the analyst.
"We think the DRAM market has inherently become more diversified than it was 10 years ago," he said.
— CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this story.