Cadence's IBD composite and EPS ratings of 90 support its standing as arguably the best in the 'making chips better' group after ASML. The screen estimates 2026 EPS growth of 18% and sales growth of 21%. Its chart is near a breakout after a long pullback. x.com 

Entegris, positioned in the key AI-upstream semiconductor equipment space with footholds in chips, rare earths and pharma, has broken out of a pullback trend on rising volume. The next stop is 186. x.com 

ASE Technology's packaging tightness now extends beyond AI to analog and mature-node chips, supporting price hikes. Lead times are up over 30%; FC/Wirebond/QFN hikes of 10–80% and CoWoS hikes of 10–20% are expected in 3Q–4Q26. Higher AMD server CPU wafer allocation, CoWoS adoption for Venice, Verano and future AMD CPUs, and limited competition support LEAP growth. LEAP revenue is forecast at US$4bn/$8bn in 2026/27, above guidance. The target rises to NT$843 from NT$754 on 25x 2027E EPS. x.com 

Improving earnings and more attractive valuations favor AI infrastructure names Nvidia, Micron, Broadcom and TSMC. Goldman Sachs charts put memory stocks at about 4 times two-year forward earnings versus an 8 times median, and large fabless chip stocks at about 13 times versus 18 times. x.com 

Chemicals are an obvious, overlooked layer of the AI buildout, and most of the stocks have not moved yet. Entegris is the purity play inside TSMC's Arizona fab, where one contaminant can ruin a $30,000 package. MKS supplies specialty chemicals for advanced packaging, Rogers is an indirect play on optical transceivers and high-speed switches, and Element Solutions is the most direct advanced-packaging play, with organic growth the highest since COVID. Chemours belongs in the group too. x.com  … Show more

Intel's EMIB-T packaging could reaccelerate now that the root causes of substrate yields around 45-50% have been identified. Momentum for EMIB-T is rising for Google's TPU v10, supporting the mid- to long-term positive view despite the v9 timing slip. x.com 

Memory's thesis keeps getting better as next-generation HBM pricing roughly triples. Per @EhrmantrautCap_, HBM3E sold at $1.50 per Gb, while Samsung is negotiating around $4.50 or more for HBM4 with major customers, before volume even ramps. Memory has been one of the best holds all year, and it is hard not to stay bullish even after the run. x.com 

US semiconductor equipment makers are the sturdiest picks-and-shovels play, because any industry expansion needs equipment first, giving them a place in every bull market. In the latest US tech selloff, chip and optical stocks fell broadly, yet equipment names jumped double digits at the open and nearly all closed higher, a clear vote by investors. The group spans Applied Materials, Lam, KLA, MKS, Entegris, Onto, Nova and ACM Research, with Axcelis, Ultra Clean and Veeco strongest. x.com 

Rack-scale AI pods need more wafers and advanced packaging, favoring Applied Materials' equipment portfolio. Applied's slides model two to four times as many wafers per agentic pod; the company says it leads HBM packaging process steps and expects over $2.4 billion in advanced-packaging revenue in 2026. Wiring uses about half of chip power, adding a need for equipment innovation. Applied's WFE share should grow; its optics opportunity depends on scale toward the end of the decade. x.com  x.com  … Show more

Shin-Etsu Chemical is shifting from a chemical conglomerate to a chip-supply bottleneck, owning lithography and chemistry patents essential to the glass-substrate era. In 1,000W+ AI data centers glass is already required, as organic substrates warp and crack under the heat of Nvidia's Rubin systems. Intel and Samsung have moved pilot lines into volume production, with Shin-Etsu supplying bonding chemistry and masks. Cyclical PVC cash funds its electronics push, supporting a re-rating. x.com  … Show more