Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) shares rose 1.49 percent to close at NT$272 on Friday, pushing the chipmaker’s market capitalization to a new high of NT$7.05 trillion (US$227.1 billion) amid optimism over its revenue outlook for the second half of the year.
TSMC posted cumulative revenue of NT$650.58 billion in the first eight months of the year, edging up 0.59 percent from NT$646.78 billion a year earlier.
US-based market information advisory firm IC Insights on Wednesday said that TSMC’s revenue in the second half of the year would likely jump by 32 percent from the first half, driven by rising demand for chips made using its advanced 7-nanometer process technology.
“Since the global financial crisis, it is the first time that revenue is expected to grow more than 30 percent in the second half of the year compared with the first half,” Jih Sun Securities Investment Consulting Co (日盛投顧) analyst Simon Lu (呂金源) said in a note on Friday.
“If IC Insights’ estimates are true, TSMC’s revenue will be better than expected,” Lu said.
Jih Sun’s forecast was that TSMC’s revenue would increase 28.7 percent from the first half, with full-year revenue up 1.91 percent to NT$1.05 trillion.
As the company is likely to continue to maintain its lead regarding advanced process technologies, and it is expected to distribute a cash dividend of more than NT$10 per share this year, Jih Sun maintained its “buy” investment rating for TSMC.
In related news, the US International Trade Commission (ITC) has decided to launch an investigation into patent infringement allegations involving TSMC, after GlobalFoundaries Inc on Aug. 26 filed lawsuits against the chipmaker in US and German courts, accusing it and other companies of infringing on 16 of its patents, the Central News Agency reported on Saturday.
Apart from TSMC, companies also regarded as defendants in this case include IC designers MediaTek Inc (聯發科), Xilinx Inc and Qualcomm Inc, as well as search engine giant Google and electronic component supplier Avnet Inc, the agency reported, citing the ITC.
TSMC last month said that GlobalFoundries’ lawsuits were unfounded and that it would vigorously defend its proprietary technology and fight the allegations.
Analysts view the lawsuits as a non-event and say investors should focus on TSMC’s long-term competitiveness, as lawsuits in the tech sector are common and could take years to resolve.
Taiwan Ratings Corp (中華信評) on Thursday confirmed its long-term “twAAA” and short-term “twA-1+” issuer credit ratings for TSMC, with a stable credit outlook.
“The ratings on TSMC reflect the company’s dominant market position in the global semiconductor foundry business, advanced technology capability supporting very strong profitability and very low debt leverage,” the ratings agency said in a statement.
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