The
global
semiconductor
industry
is
set
to
experience
“groundbreaking
changes,”
Citi
said,
naming
stocks
to
play
the
theme.
“We
believe
semiconductor
architecture
will
evolve
towards
the
direction
of
memory
and
logic
integration
for
AI
computing,”
the
investment
bank’s
analysts
wrote
in
a
May
17
research
note.
Here
are
six
stocks
from
Citi’s
list,
which
stand
out
for
having
substantial
upside
potential,
according
to
FactSet’s
consensus
price
targets.
Nvidia
Among
Citi’s
list
of
top
stocks
is
investor
darling
Nvidia
.
The
company’s
shares
crossed
$1,000
for
the
first
time
following
its
earnings
announcement
last
Wednesday.
The
stock
has
had
an
extraordinary
journey
of
late,
gaining
nearly
13.5%
over
the
last
week
and
close
to
174%
over
the
past
year.
Of
the
62
analysts
covering
Nvidia,
56
have
an
overweight
or
buy
call.
Analysts’
target
price
on
the
stock
is
$1,174.4,
representing
10.3%
potential
upside,
according
to
FactSet
data.
Citi
remains
bullish
on
the
stock
and
expects
Nvidia
to
“represent
90
–
95%
of
the
AI
GPUs
[graphic
processing
unit]
market
in
C24
and
C25.”
That
will
be
“backed
by
an
accelerated
roadmap
and
a
technology
leadership
going
from
the
chip
level
to
software
level,”
analyst
Atif
Malik
wrote.
ASMPT
and
Ibiden
Among
the
under-the-radar
stocks
on
Citi’s
list
is
the
Hong
Kong-listed
ASMPT
and
Tokyo
Stock
Exchange-listed
Ibiden
.
“We
are
positive
on
ASMPT
as
we
expect
the
company
to
benefit
from
increasing
AI-driven
demand
for
its
advanced
packaging
solutions,
notably
for
its
TCB
(thermocompression
bonder),”
the
bank’s
analyst
Kevin
Chen
wrote.
He
noted
that
ASMPT
is
a
leading
supplier
of
TCB,
adding
that
the
company
is
expected
to
have
more
“meaningful
AI-related
contribution”
in
2024
and
2025.
The
stock
is
included
in
the
Franklin
FTSE
Hong
Kong
ETF
(1.1%
weight).
Meanwhile,
Citi’s
optimism
on
Ibiden
follows
its
“large
market
shares
in
high-end
ABF
[Ajinomoto
Build-Up
Film]
substrates
including
for
AI
GPUs.”
“We
remain
confident
of
medium-term
earnings
growth
on
strong
sales
of
generative
AI-related
packages
and
a
recovery
in
general-purpose
server
ABF
substrates
toward
FY3/26,”
analyst
Takayuki
Naito
added.
Ibiden
has
a
0.5%
weighting
in
the
BlackRock
Future
Tech
ETF
.
Samsung
Electronics
and
SK
Hynix
South
Korean
tech
giants
Samsung
Electronics
and
SK
Hynix
also
made
Citi’s
list.
The
investment
bank’s
optimism
on
Samsung
Electronics
follows
expectations
of
a
two-fold
and
three-fold
increase
in
its
high
bandwidth
memory
(HBM)
shipments
in
2024
and
2025.
Citi
also
noted
that
SK
Hynix
is
looking
forward
to
stronger
supplies
of
HBM3E
chips
through
to
2025,
“in
line
with
the
customer’s
roadmap.”
“Despite
market
concerns
on
potential
HBM
oversupply,
Hynix
noted
that
HBM
demand
visibility
is
continuously
improving
amid
CSP
[cloud
solution
provider]
clients’
AI
investment
growth,”
analyst
Peter
Lee
wrote.
Both
stocks
are
traded
in
the
iShares
MSCI
South
Korea
ETF
(Samsung
Electronics
has
a
23.6%
weighting
and
SK
Hynix
has
a
8.4%
weighting)
and
Franklin
FTSE
South
Korea
ETF
(Samsung
Electronics
16.4%
and
SK
Hynix
8.3%).
—
CNBC’s
Michael
Bloom
contributed
to
this
report.
