GURU REPORT

David Tepper: Micron Saved Him

S&P 500 down 4.6%, Tepper up 8.75%. A 250% surge bet on MU rescued Q1. Then came reports of a massive liquidation in March. Where does he stand heading into the May 13F?

Justin·April 19, 2026·6 min read

AI Summary

Tepper built a 250% larger Micron position and initiated a $182M EWY Korea ETF stake in Q4 2025, driving Appaloosa to an estimated +8.75% return in Q1 2026 while the S&P 500 fell 4.6%. A record-breaking earnings beat from MU — with adjusted EPS of $4.78 surpassing consensus by 21.3% — was the core catalyst. Reports then emerged in March 2026 that Tepper had liquidated most of the portfolio, though this remains unconfirmed. The May 13F filing is expected to clarify his current positioning and whether a new major thesis is already in the making.

The Answer Comes on May 15

"While everyone was down 10% from the tariff shock, how did Tepper post +8.75%?"

In late March 2026, Appaloosa's Q1 performance of +8.75% leaked (an unofficial estimate — Appaloosa does not publicly disclose returns). That places it among the top performers of the quarter, even as the S&P 500 fell 4.6%. At the center of that outperformance was a $428M position in Micron (MU) built in Q4 2025. The May 13F will reveal what came next.

The Position He Built in Q4 2025

Tepper's Q4 2025 portfolio can be distilled into a single thesis: "The next bottleneck in AI is memory."

The execution was a 250% surge in Micron exposure — from 420,000 shares to 1.5 million shares, a $428M position representing 6.25% of the portfolio. He trimmed NVDA, fully exited AMD, and concentrated the proceeds into the primary beneficiary of HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) demand. On top of that, he initiated a $182M position in EWY (Korea ETF) — a dual bet on the Korean semiconductor value chain anchored by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.

At the same time, he quietly trimmed Alibaba by 20%, beginning a gradual reduction in China exposure.

Q1: Micron Rescued the Portfolio

Micron's earnings results proved just how precise Tepper's bet was.

Micron Q1 FY2026 (reported December 2025): Revenue of $13.6B, up 56.7% YoY. Adjusted EPS of $4.78, beating consensus of $3.94–$3.95 by 21.3%. Operating income of $6.4B, up 182% YoY — a record-high level. HBM demand far exceeded expectations.

That earnings beat provided sustained support for MU throughout Q1, serving as the primary driver of Tepper's top-tier performance. While the broader market was rattled by tariff fears, the AI memory cycle never stalled.

Then Came Reports of a Massive Liquidation

There's a twist. In March 2026, reports emerged that Tepper had liquidated the majority of Appaloosa's portfolio. There has been no official confirmation, but the market is interpreting this through three lenses.

① Profit-taking: MU up 30%+, EWY up 20%+ — sufficient gains in Q1 alone, with cash secured ahead of a potential second round of tariffs

② Macro repositioning: With recession probability breaking above 45%, rotating out of equities and into fixed income and macro positions

③ Staging a new major bet: A complete portfolio overhaul à la Druckenmiller — quietly building a new thesis not yet disclosed

What to Watch in the May 13F

Question	Implication
Did MU exposure increase?	Stronger conviction in the HBM supercycle
Was MU trimmed or exited?	Taking profits and scouting the next cycle
Is the EWY Korea ETF still held?	Continued bet on the Korean semiconductor value chain
Was Alibaba cut further?	Gauging the pace of China de-risking
Significant portfolio reduction confirmed?	Validating the liquidation reports and signaling next direction

The next move of a top-performing manager always commands attention — especially when that performance is followed by reports of a full-scale liquidation. The May 13F will show exactly where Tepper stands right now.

Data as of: Q4 2025 SEC 13F (filed February 2026). Appaloosa Q1 2026 return of +8.75% (unofficial leaked estimate). Micron Q1 FY2026 revenue $13.6B (YoY +56.7%), adjusted EPS $4.78, operating income $6.4B.