This weekly newsletter pulls together summaries of the top ten most-read Insights across Tech Hardware and Semiconductor on Smartkarma.
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1. UMC. Now I’m Interested…
- UMC reported Q424 revenues of NT$60,386 million, flat sequentially and in line with guidance.
- For the full year 2024, revenues amounted to NT$232,303 million, representing an increase of 4.4% YoY.
- Share price at a 4 year low and the outlook is still tepid, but almost $6 billion CapEx invested during the downturn years will pay dividends in the coming years..
2. Taiwan Dual-Listings Monitor: TSMC Spread Down But Still Extreme; UMC Rare ADR Discount Level
- TSMC: +23.9% Premium; Fallen But Remains in Historically Extreme Territory
- UMC: -3.6% Discount; Good Level to Go Long the ADR Spread
- ASE: +0.3% Premium; Can Consider Going Long the Spread at Current Level
3. UMC (2303.TT; UMC.US): Earthquake Alters 1Q25 Outlook; 2025 Growth Expected to Low Single Digits YoY
- Shipment: expected to decrease by mid-single-digits QoQ ASP: Remains flat in USD/NTD appreciation may lead to decline for 1Q25 sales.
- UMC’s addressable market in 2025 will grow in the low-single-digits YoY, driven by a moderate recovery in consumer applications in mature nodes.
- 1Q25 consumer will grow QoQ thanks to higher DTV, DDI, Wi-Fi, and STB demand. Other applications will decline QoQ.
4. Taiwan Tech Weekly: UMC Results Ahead; Nvidia & TSMC Partner for Silicon Photonics Technology
- UMC Results This Week; Insight Into Supply/Demand Environment for More Mature Semiconductor Segments
- Nvidia and TSMC Announce Partnership in Silicon Photonics Technology — Will Enable More Energy-Efficient AI
- TSMC 4Q24 Results Signal Multi-Year Market Share Gains; Margin Strength; Sustainable Industry Growth
5. Silicon Motion: Memory Controllers Emerging as Strategic Pillar for Global HPC and AI Leadership
- What is PCIe 5.0 and Why SIMO is Poised to Expand Market Share with PCIe 5.0
- PCIe 5.0 and Beyond — Importance for Enterprise HPC and AI Data Centers
- Looking Ahead: MaxLinear Arbitration in 2H25E — We Believe SIMO Likely to Win Its Termination Fee Plus Additional Award for Additional Damages
6. Stargate. It’s Not All About You Microsoft. Or You Either Elon
- President Donald Trump announced the Stargate Project, a new company which intends to invest $500 billion over four years building new AI infrastructure for OpenAI in the United States.
- Elon Musk is miffed, Microsoft says they “approved” the project and have a new Right of First Refusal agreement in place with OpenAI.
- Stargate is exclusively for OpenAI and the press release states that its mission is to provide a strategic capability to protect the national security of America and its allies.
7. United Microelectronics 4Q24 Results: Intel Partnership On Track and Is A Key Model for UMC’s Future
- UMC Misses 4Q24 Expectations — Gross Margin Dips with Flat QoQ Revenue
- UMC Guides for 40% Reduction in Capex Budget — We Believe Signals Strategic Shift to Less Capex Intensive Business Model
- Intel 12nm Partnership Remains on Track and is Key Business Model for Future; UMC Sees Improvement in Consumer Electronics Industry Inventories
8. TSMC (2330.TT; TSM.US): Earthquake Impact Limited; Setting Newest Production Line Not Viable in US.
- Taiwan experienced an earthquake on January 21st, and the tremors are still ongoing.
- Dr. CC Wei, Chairman of TSMC, explained the establishment of over 10,000 additional Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) at the U.S. Fab.
- The yield at TSMC’s Arizona fab is about 4% higher than at their Tainan fab, marking a record for initial production.
9. Novatek (3034.TT): Rush Orders Received and Beneficial from Chinese Household Electronic Demand.
- Novatek Microelectronics Corp (3034 TT) 1Q25 demand has surged abruptly, with a likely 5% quarter-over-quarter shipment increase.
- China’s substantial demand is capable of supporting a Fabless leader like Novatek.
- The unexpected demand surge in 1Q25 has greatly benefited Novatek .
10. Vanguard (5347.TT): 1Q25 Outlook Could See a Flat QoQ; Shipments for DDIC and PMIC Are Increasing.
- Usually, the 1st quarter of each year should show a decline for foundry companies, but Vanguard Intl Semiconductor (5347 TT)‘s 1Q25 results could be relatively flat quarter-over-quarter.
- Vanguard Intl Semiconductor (5347 TT)‘s demand for Display Driver IC (DDIC) is on the rise, surpassing the growth seen in Power Management IC (PMIC).
- Despite the potential increase in shipments in 1Q25, the rise in lower-margin products, such as 8″ DDICs for large panels, is notable.