Connect with us

Finance

Play artificial intelligence with semiconductor ETF: VanEck CEO

Published

on

The "cleanest AI ETF out there"?

Investing in semiconductors may be the most efficient way to play the artificial intelligence boom, according to VanEck’s CEO.

“Semiconductors have become the heart of the AI trade,” Jan van Eck told CNBC’s “ETF Edge” this week.

His firm’s VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH), which tracks 25 of the biggest chipmakers in the country, is up 21% this year as of Wednesday’s close. However, SMH has fallen nearly 6% this month, led to the downside by Intel, AMD and On Semiconductor.

The fund’s top holding, Nvidia, has seen its shares surge nearly 70% this year amid soaring demand for its AI processors, but it’s also down 7% since the start of the month.

Van Eck suggests the weakness is temporary. He contends high interest in AI chips could set up the group for more durable returns.

“They have become revalued from being a highly cyclical business with short product lives to part of the growth trade, and they have more recurring revenue, so they can just stay at high profitabilities even despite some of the short-term stuff,” said van Eck.

ETF Action founding partner Mike Akins also sees opportunities for investors. He thinks limited competition for some of the top chipmakers’ products could sustain the group.

“You have a high moat, and they control that pricing point,” he said in the same interview. “Until there’s a situation where competition increases meaningfully in this space, where you can have some pricing pressure, it’s hard to see that trade going away.”

Still, Akins advises investors to pay attention to semiconductor fund flows as a barometer for future performance.

“We often caution our clients to almost think about flows as a contrarian indicator. As flows get really depressed, that’s potentially opportunity to buy, and vice versa. As flows get really extended, it might be time to pare a little bit.”

Disclaimer

Continue Reading

Finance

UAL, MS, ASML, PLD and more

Published

on

Continue Reading

Finance

Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: MS, CSCO, ASML

Published

on

Continue Reading

Finance

Morgan Stanley (MS) earnings Q3 2024

Published

on

Ted Pick, CEO Morgan Stanley, speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 18th, 2024.

Adam Galici | CNBC

Morgan Stanley topped analysts’ estimates for third quarter profit as its wealth management, trading and investment banking operations generated more revenue than expected.

Here’s what the company reported:

  • Earnings:$1.88 a share vs $1.58 LSEG estimate
  • Revenue: $15.38 billion vs. $14.41 billion estimate

Morgan Stanley had several tailwinds in its favor. The bank’s massive wealth management business was helped by high stock market values in the quarter, which inflates the management fees the bank collects.

Investment banking has rebounded after a dismal 2023, a trend that may continue as easing rates will encourage more financing and merger activity.

Finally, its Wall Street rivals have posted better-than-expected trading results, making it unlikely that the firm missed out on elevated activity.

JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup topped expectations, helped by better-than-expected revenue from trading or investment banking.

This story is developing. Please check back for updates.

Continue Reading

Trending