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Better Semiconductor Stock: AMD vs. Arm Holdings
AMDAMD(AMD) The Motley Fool·2025-02-27 12:37

Industry Overview - The semiconductor sector presents strong growth opportunities due to increasing demand for computer chips across various industries, including robotics, automotive, and artificial intelligence [1] Company Analysis: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) - AMD is positioned as an attractive investment due to its products that support accelerated computing, essential for AI systems [3] - In Q4 2024, AMD's sales to data centers surged 69% year-over-year to 3.9billion,contributingtoatotalrevenuegrowthof243.9 billion, contributing to a total revenue growth of 24% to 7.7 billion [4] - The PC market also showed strong demand for AMD's hardware, with Q4 revenue growing 58% year-over-year to a record 2.3billion[5]AMDsQ4grossmarginimprovedto512.3 billion [5] - AMD's Q4 gross margin improved to 51%, up from 47% the previous year, indicating better cost management and profitability [5] - The company's Q4 balance sheet showed total assets of 69.2 billion against total liabilities of 11.7billion,with11.7 billion, with 5.1 billion in cash and equivalents, a 13% increase from Q3 [6] Company Analysis: Arm Holdings - Arm Holdings dominates the smartphone semiconductor chip market with energy-efficient designs and is now leveraging this strength to enter the AI market [7] - The introduction of the Arm compute subsystems (CSS) for consumer devices, utilizing three-nanometer process technology, enhances chip power and efficiency [8] - Arm reported record royalty revenue of 580millioninfiscalQ3,a23580 million in fiscal Q3, a 23% year-over-year increase, contributing to total sales growth of 19% to 983 million [9] - The company's fiscal Q3 gross margin was 97.2%, up from 95.6% the previous year, reflecting strong financial health [10] - Arm is expanding its revenue streams by producing hardware for its designs, with Meta Platforms as a potential key customer [11][12] Investment Comparison - Both AMD and Arm are strong candidates for investment due to their success in the AI sector, but stock valuation is a critical factor in choosing between them [13] - AMD's forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is lower than Arm's, suggesting that AMD stock represents better value [14] - AMD's share price has become more reasonable following a decline, while Arm's stock appears expensive, making AMD the more attractive long-term investment [16]