Is Netlist stock a buy?

Roth Capital Markets analyst Suji Desilva said in an Oct. 1 note that Netlist’s (Netlist Stock Quote, Chart, News, Analysts, Financials NASDAQ:NLST) filing of an International Trade Commission case against Samsung Electronics increases the chance of a favorable intellectual property licensing settlement, given the eventual risk of Samsung and related parties losing access to U.S. markets for critical memory products if an exclusion order were imposed.

Desilva maintained a “Buy” rating and US$2.00 price target on Netlist.

“NLST initiated a new ITC legal proceeding against Samsung and related parties that seeks an exclusion and cease-and-desist order relating to Samsung’s import of various DDR5 DRAM memory products to the U.S., which represents a significant majority of Samsung’s global sales,” Desilva said.

As part of the filing, Netlist also named Google and SuperMicro, both major Samsung DRAM customers. The case covers DRAM applications across servers, AI infrastructure, notebooks, and desktops, representing a market in the tens of billions of dollars.

Desilva noted that the new ITC case builds on evidence and findings from recent federal court cases, targeting infringement of five Netlist patents, several of which Samsung has already lost against in previous proceedings.

The ITC is expected to formally institute the case within weeks, with an initial determination anticipated in the third quarter of 2026 and a final determination toward year-end 2026. That decision would be followed by a 60-day presidential review, which could ultimately establish an exclusion order restricting Samsung DRAM imports into the U.S.

“We believe the current administration is favourable to domestic IP technology companies alleging global conglomerates violating licensing rights, which represents a tailwind for NLST’s efforts,” Desilva said.

He added that in the rapidly growing AI server market, Samsung is attempting to regain critical high-bandwidth memory share from leader SK Hynix, a long-time Netlist licensee planning U.S.-based production facilities.

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