MRAM vs SLAB: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: MRAM is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. MRAM and SLAB share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined MRAM and SLAB exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Everspin Technologies, based in Chandler, Arizona, builds magnetoresistive random access memory and the tunnel magnetoresistance sensors that share its magnetic process. Its memory stores each bit in a magnetic tunnel junction rather than a charge trap, so data survives a power cut, writes complete in nanoseconds, endurance is effectively unlimited, and radiation does not corrupt the cell. Those properties put the parts where flash struggles: write buffers in industrial automation controllers, smart meters and energy management gear, transportation systems, RAID cache in storage arrays, and aerospace and defense hardware where a boot image cannot be allowed to fail. Two product families carry the business, the older Toggle MRAM and the newer spin-transfer torque line sold as PERSYST, alongside a portfolio of more than 700 patents and applications. Manufacturing is split: Everspin buys standard CMOS wafers and adds its own magnetic layers at a 200mm fab it operates in Chandler, while GlobalFoundries produces full-flow 300mm STT-MRAM wafers under a long-standing agreement that grants GlobalFoundries exclusivity on certain nodes for a period after qualification.

Full MRAM guide

Silicon Laboratories, or Silicon Labs, is an Austin-based semiconductor company focused on wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things. After selling its Infrastructure and Automotive business to Skyworks Solutions in 2021, it became a pure-play IoT connectivity designer. Its chips (wireless SoCs, microcontrollers, and modules, paired with software stacks and its Simplicity Studio development tools) support Bluetooth, Zigbee, Z-Wave, Thread, Matter, Wi-Fi, and proprietary protocols. The company reports in two segments: Industrial & Commercial, which serves smart buildings, metering, industrial automation, and connected commercial devices, and Home & Life, which serves smart-home, consumer, and connected-health products. Its differentiator is multi-protocol SoCs that give developers flexibility across standards, competing against players like Nordic Semiconductor, NXP, Espressif, and Microchip.

Full SLAB guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• MRAM drivers: Defense and space work that sells process, not just parts; A density roadmap aimed at edge AI and servers.
• SLAB drivers: Pending Texas Instruments acquisition; Deal timeline and regulatory approval.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The most consequential open item is litigation, and it is a patent fight rather than a shareholder suit: Avalanche Technology filed a patent infringement complaint against Everspin in the US District Court for the District of Delaware and a parallel Section 337 complaint on January 28, 2026, amended February 5, and the International Trade Commission voted to institute Investigation No. For SLAB, the central risk is specific to the pending acquisition: if the Texas Instruments deal is delayed, renegotiated, or fails to receive regulatory or shareholder approval, the stock could fall back toward its pre-deal level, well below $231.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick MRAM if you believe its drivers more; SLAB if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the MRAM and SLAB guides.

MRAM. Everspin is one of those companies where the GAAP and non-GAAP lines tell different stories, and both are worth reading: stock compensation and litigation expense produced a ~$3.6 million GAAP loss in the same quarter that generated ~$2.9 million of non-GAAP income on record revenue. Trailing revenue near ~$62 million against a ~$460 million market value works out to roughly 7.4 times sales, or about 6.7 times on an enterprise value basis once the ~$41 million net cash position is netted out. September-quarter guidance of ~$19.5 million to ~$20.5 million would extend the sequential run, though a full year of the $40 million prime-contract work has not yet passed through the income statement.

SLAB. Figures are approximate and tied to the asOf date; verify live numbers before acting. Because of the all-cash acquisition, traditional valuation multiples matter less than the fixed $231 offer price and the odds and timing of the deal closing. The stock typically trades at a modest discount to $231, and that gap reflects the market's estimate of completion risk plus the wait until closing. If the deal were to fall through, the shares would likely re-rate toward standalone fundamentals, which are more cyclical and lower than the offer implies.

Headline figures (approximate, August 2026): MRAM shows revenue (ttm) ~$62M, q2 2026 revenue ~$18.7M, a company record, up ~42% year over year, gross margin (q2 2026) ~53.9%, versus ~51.3% a year earlier, q2 2026 earnings per share ~-$0.15 GAAP, ~$0.11 non-GAAP; SLAB shows acquisition price $231.00 per share in cash from Texas Instruments (announced Feb 4, 2026; approximately $7.5 billion enterprise value), expected close First half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals and a Silicon Labs shareholder vote, revenue (q1 2026) Approximately $214 million, up roughly 20% year over year, segment mix (q1 2026) Industrial & Commercial approximately $128 million (up ~33%); Home & Life approximately $86 million (up ~5%).

MRAM and SLAB are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined MRAM and SLAB exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.