China Chips Taiwan and Technology

China Chips Taiwan and Technology
by Robert Maire on 05-28-2018 at 12:00 pm

Three critical China issues; Trade, Taiwan & Technology. China is a “double edge sword” of risk & opportunity. These issues greatly impact stock valuations. We have recently given a presentation at both the SEMI ASMC conference in Saratoga Springs and The Confab conference in Las Vegas. Both conferences… Read More


China Semiconductor Equipment China Sales at Risk

China Semiconductor Equipment China Sales at Risk
by Robert Maire on 05-27-2018 at 7:00 am

We have been on a roller coaster ride of on again off again trade talk between China and the US. It is unclear where we are on a day by day basis but of late it appears that we are not seeing a lot of progress and some progress we thought we had made may not have actually happened.… Read More


ZTE Caving shows China Trade Tirade is Hollow

ZTE Caving shows China Trade Tirade is Hollow
by Robert Maire on 05-18-2018 at 7:00 am

We have been watching the ZTE saga play out on the public stage as we think it is an extremely important leading example of how the administration will truly act. As we all know, actions speak louder than words, and in the case of ZTE our words said one thing and our actions said something else. We need to analyze what the actions really… Read More


Data Center Powers Intel but 10NM Still Slow

Data Center Powers Intel but 10NM Still Slow
by Robert Maire on 04-29-2018 at 12:00 pm

Intel (INTC) blew away expectations based on strong performance in the data center. Revenues of $16.1B versus street of $15.05B and EPS of $0.93 versus street of $0.72. While revenue was up 9% over prior year, earnings were 50% higher. Guidance is for Q2 revenue of $16.3B and EPS of $0.85 versus street of $15.55B and EPS of $0.81. IOT,… Read More


Samsung has another record quarter in chips

Samsung has another record quarter in chips
by Robert Maire on 04-29-2018 at 7:00 am

Samsung throws further gas on the fire of weak handset and CAPEX not set but will be down versus 2017. Samsung reported revenues of KRW 60.56 Trillion and KRW 15.64 Trillion operating profit ($56B and $15B). Chips accounted for whopping KRW 11.55 Trillion in operating profit on revenues of KRW 20.78 Trillion ( $11B and $19B)….a… Read More


EUV Continues Roll Out With Lumpy Quarters Ahead

EUV Continues Roll Out With Lumpy Quarters Ahead
by Robert Maire on 04-20-2018 at 12:00 pm

ASML put up good results with revenues of Euro2.285B versus street of Euro2.22B and EPS of Euro1.26 versus street of Euro1.17. Guide is for Euro2.55B versus street of Euro2.46B but EPS of Euro1.16 versus street EPS of Euro1.35 on lower gross margins, slipping from 48% to 43%.

A couple of EUV systems have slipped out. This is not surprising… Read More


Intel to buy Micron – Trump Blocks IC Equipment Sales to China – Broadcom Fighting for QCOM

Intel to buy Micron – Trump Blocks IC Equipment Sales to China – Broadcom Fighting for QCOM
by Robert Maire on 04-01-2018 at 12:00 pm

It has been reported over the holiday weekend that Intel is in talks with Micron over a proposed merger that would value Micron at $70 per share in a deal of a combination of stock and cash for Micron shareholders. It is said that the boards of both companies have already approved the deal.

Intel’s CEO Brian Krzanich said, “We… Read More


Will Broadcom become a Chipzilla or is the deal DOA?

Will Broadcom become a Chipzilla or is the deal DOA?
by Robert Maire on 11-11-2017 at 6:00 am

The Broadcom bid for Qualcomm is the biggest, boldest semiconductor deal to date. Just when we thought semi M&A was cooling off, this deal is a years worth of deals rolled into one. Not only does this deal upset the current balance between chip suppliers and customers, it would create a giant entity smack in the middle of IOT, AI,… Read More


Choosing the lesser of 2 evils EUV vs Multi Patterning!

Choosing the lesser of 2 evils EUV vs Multi Patterning!
by Robert Maire on 11-03-2017 at 12:00 pm

For Halloween this week we thought it would be appropriate to talk about things that strike fear into the hearts of semiconductor makers and process engineers toiling away in fabs. Do I want to do multi-patterning with the huge increase in complexity, number of steps, masks and tools or do I want to do EUV with unproven tools, unproven… Read More


Do investors understand the new memory paradigm?

Do investors understand the new memory paradigm?
by Robert Maire on 10-11-2017 at 7:00 am

Micron put up a great quarter beating both quarterly expectations and guidance. Even though the stock was up 8% and we still think it has a long way to go as investors have not fully embraced the upside ahead in the memory market.… Read More