As of March 2025, a new announcement coming from SoftBank revealed a transaction of up to $6.5 billion dollars as the entity decided to purchase a semiconductor manufacturer named Ampere Computing. While there are many ways investors can look deeper into the accretive effects of SoftBank and whether it adds any value, there is a more productive (and profitable) venture at hand today.
Understanding that when big entities decide to undertake mergers and acquisitions, activity might tip the rest of the market to the fact that there might be underlying discounts in the area of chosen purchases, the opportunity now lies in the broader technology sector with a specific focus on semiconductor and chip makers, as Ampere Computing looked attractive enough to be acquired, the effect might be present on other much bigger names out there.
Such names, which are key players in the industry, might be found in stocks like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM), Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD), and even ASML Holding (NASDAQ: ASML) for investors to consider their next potential leg higher in their portfolios within the coming months or quarters.
Advanced Micro Devices Stock’s Risk to Reward: An Attractive Deal Today
[content-module:Forecast|NASDAQ: AMD]As of February 2025, a few factors have come into play to show investors why and how Advanced Micro Devices stock might be one of the best plays in this broader context of the semiconductor industry being a potentially attractive buy today.
It began with a 9.9% increase in Advanced Micro Devices stock holdings by UBS Asset Management, raising its net position to $2.6 billion, or 1.3% ownership in the company. This move could be seen as a bullish signal for investors seeking upside in the semiconductor industry.
Then, realizing that at only 57% of its 52-week high, Advanced Micro Devices stock offers a fantastic setup for those willing to buy a “beaten-down” stock while ignoring all of the bearish sentiment around this decline, analysts from Benchmark decided to not only reiterate their Buy rating on the stock because of the setup but also keep a bullish outlook.
This outlook can be taken from their price targets of $170 per share, which not only call for the stock to flirt with its 52-week high prices but also for a net upside potential of as much as 60.6% from where the company trades today.
De-Escalations Will Help Taiwan Semiconductor Stock Push Forward
[content-module:Forecast|NYSE: TSM]Over the year 2024, investors were concerned with the potential conflicts between Taiwan and China, and now even the United States, with trade tariffs between the two nations. This tension and uncertainty might have driven Taiwan Semiconductor stock to trade lower during this period.
That is how the company ended up trading at only 78% of its 52-week high, reiterating the fact that the broader industry might be suffering from undervaluation, as SoftBank’s acquisition might have already suggested. With this in mind, investors can check with Wall Street about the potential upside for the chipmaker.
As of January 2025, Barclays has kept its Overweight rating for Taiwan Semiconductor stock and a price target as high as $255 per share. Compared to where the stock trades today, this view and valuation call for the stock to rally by as much as 44.4% to give investors another fantastic risk-to-reward ratio in the chipmaking industry.
Of course, the company’s financials provide a justification, one that can show investors why this valuation set by Wall Street analysts is as clear as day in the coming months and one that might be even higher as well.
ASML: A Vital Player Selling for Cheap Today
[content-module:Forecast|NASDAQ: ASML]Most investors tend to look over ASML stock due to it being set up internationally and not making as many headlines as other names in the semiconductor industry. However, this one company is one of the most vital players in the success of artificial intelligence and its supply chain today.
ASML stock provides the machinery that allows other chipmakers to produce their inventory in the first place, which makes for a big headscratcher when investors notice it trading as low as 65% of its 52-week high levels today. Seeing this setup as one of the easiest “wins” in stock picking, some analysts decided to boost the stock accordingly.
As of late January 2025, those from J.P. Morgan Chase saw ASML stock as an Overweight rating and valued it as high as $1,100 per share, calling for as much as 53.2% upside from where the stock sits today. Today’s list could see a boost from SoftBank’s acquisition buzz, and even if it doesn’t, it still shows investors where value might be today.
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