A tough day for tech–Part 1, bad news from chip makers

A tough day for tech–Part 1, bad news from chip makers

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), the company that makes the chips for everyone from Apple to Nvidia, has told suppliers to delay some deliveries amid concerns about slowing chip demand, according to a new report Friday from Reuters. The company has told large chip-equipment suppliers to delay some deliveries, Reuters reported. The company is “increasingly nervous” about demand from its customers, the report said.Last week, the company said its August revenue fell 13.5% from last year but rose 6.2% from the prior month. As you might imagine, the news wasn’t greeted with cheers by investors in technology stocks.

If the tech economy is slowing, somebody forgot to tell Nvidia–stock surges 20% in after-hours on earnings, revenue, guidance beats

If the tech economy is slowing, somebody forgot to tell Nvidia–stock surges 20% in after-hours on earnings, revenue, guidance beats

Nvidia (NVDA) shares were up 19.68% at 4:45 p.m. New York time today, May 24, after the company reported beating analyst estimates on earnings and revenue. The company also told analysts to expect second-quarter revenue way, way above pre-announcement projections. For the three-month period ending April 30, Nvidia earned $1.09 per share, excluding one-time items, as revenue came in at $7.19 billion. Analysts were looking for the company to report earnings of 92 cents a share and $6.28 billion in revenue.

Intel cuts dividend by 66%, stock drops just 2.26% on the day

Odds rise that Intel will keep its dividend after bond sale, adding the stock to my Jubak Picks Portfolio

The possibility that Intel (INTC) would cut its dividend has been hanging over the stock price since the company announced one of the ugliest quarters I’ve seen in a while on January 26. No question why. Intel’s adjusted free cash flow was a negative $4.075 for the full 2022 year. And with the company looking to invest heavily in new fabs, the $6 billion a year in dividend payouts looked like a potential source of investing cash. And certainly, you wouldn’t want to buy into a stock paying 5.09% (as Intel did today) if the company was about to cut its dividend. But a dividend cut looks less likely today.

A tough day for tech–Part 1, bad news from chip makers

TSMC looking for chip inventory correction to end in second half of 2023

Well, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (RSMC) ought to know. The world’s largest chip foundry makes semiconductors for just about everyone. And last week the company said that it expects revenue to fall in the first half of 2023 as semiconductor companies cut orders and reduce inventory. But, the company says, it expects demand to return to “normal” in the second half o 2023.

Selling TSM out of my long-term 50 Stocks and Millennial portfolios on China fears

Selling TSM out of my long-term 50 Stocks and Millennial portfolios on China fears

I hate to do this. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) is the premier chip manufacturer in the world and I see the company continuing to grow revenue from the increasing demand for smaller and more powerful chips. And I certainly hate to sell a stock that’s down 46% for the year to date as of the close on October 18. Under ordinary circumstances, I would hold on and ride out the current slump in the semiconductor cycle. After all, we’ve been here before, right? Except that the U.S.-China trade war and the possibility that China will look for a confrontation over Taiwan make the current circumstances anything but “ordinary.”

Please Watch My New YouTube Video: What if you haven’t been pessimistic enough?

Please Watch My New YouTube Video: What if you haven’t been pessimistic enough?

Today’s topic: what if you haven’t been pessimistic enough now? I’ve been pretty pessimistic for a while now. And I don’t expect that the October 13 bounce really marks the bottom in this Bear Market. The bottom in my opinion won’t come until the end of 2023 or, maybe, 2024. But my worry after the events of the last few days is that I haven’t been pessimistic enough. It looks like the global economy is slowing even more than we expected. The IMF International Monetary Fund came out Monday, October 10 with new lowered projections for global growth of 2.7% in 2023. That’s down from 2.9% back in July, and it’s down from 3.8% in January. We’ve also got a big escalation of the war in Ukraine leading to a worsening global energy crisis due to more extreme sanctions on Russian oil. On top of that, we have a new trade war with China hammering technology stocks. The question is, how do you get ahead of this? I’ve suggested selling Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) and ASML Holding (NASDAQ: ASML) on the assumption that China is going to retaliate by hammering U.S. companies that do regular business in China. Two more stocks that I’m looking at selling–or maybe protecting with Put options–are Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) as I try to get ahead of what’s going on in China.

A tough day for tech–Part 1, bad news from chip makers

Selling ASML Holding today in an effort to get ahead of the trade war with China

Today I’m selling ASML Holding (ASML) out of my long-term 50 Stocks Portfolio. My take on Asmel hasn’t changed: this is one of the key chip equipment companies in the drive to produce smaller and denser chips. What has changed in the market and the global economy. I think that technology, and especially chip stocks, are in a downtrend that has a lot longer to run. And that recent U.S. restrictions on advanced chip technology exports to China will set off a trade war that will come down heavily on companies such as ASML.

Repost and October 1 update: Special Report Your Best Investment Strategy for the Next Five Years

Repost and October 1 update: Special Report Your Best Investment Strategy for the Next Five Years

Today, October 1, I’ve gone back through this Special Report to update any parts of my calendar in light of what we’ve learned about the economy, about Federal Reserve interest rate policy, and about the global economy in the last few weeks. This update includes my take on the August jobs report and the September 21 meeting of the Fed. (It’s a complete revision of the original so changes are in the body of the original text.) It is different this time. And it’s likely to “be different this time” for the next five years or so. And you need an investment strategy for that period.

Please Watch My YouTube Video: Quick Pick Nvidia

Please Watch My YouTube Video: Quick Pick Nvidia

My one-hundred-and-ninetieth YouTube video: “Quick Pick Nvidia” went up today. This week’s Quick Pick: Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). I believe Nvidia will be the dominant chip stock for the next decade–but the stock is struggling during this bear market and the shares were down 58% year-to-date as of September 26. The company has come out with a new line of chips, the GeForce RTX 4000 Series, which offers a 2-4x performance boost over the last generation chip. But in order to get that boost, early reviews indicate, a computer game has to use Nvidia’s DLSS software. Currently, almost no games use DLSS. So Nvidia finds itself in a build it and they will come situation. (“Build it, and they will come,” as James Earl Jones said in Field of Dreams.) Nvidia now awaits the uptake from companies that will be using this chip of the future. Because this product doesn’t “do anything” right now, Nvidia’s upcoming earnings on November 16 won’t reflect this new product. In the short-term, I look for the stock o sell off further on the earnings report. In other words, a better buying opportunity still awaits those who can be patient.

Repost and October 1 update: Special Report Your Best Investment Strategy for the Next Five Years

Repost and October 1 update: Special Report Your Best Investment Strategy for the Next Five Years

Today, September 5, I’ve gone back through this Special Report to update any parts of my calendar in light of what we’ve learned about the economy, about Federal Reserve interest rate policy, and about the global economy in the last few weeks. This update includes my take on the August jobs report and on recent Fed-speak from the Jackson Hole conference and after. It is different this time. And it’s likely to “be different this time” for the next five years or so. And you need an investment strategy for that period.