10:47 a.m. ET, January 24, 2019
5G is great news for chip stocks
From CNN Business' Paul R. La Monica
Semiconductor stocks soared Thursday thanks to solid earnings from Texas Instruments and XIlinx. Chip companies are doing well largely because of surging demand for 5G networks.
Xilinx said sales from its communications segment rose more than 40% compared to a year ago thanks to the deployment of 5G in South Korea and preparations for 5G upgrades in the United States and China.
Texas Instruments told analysts on a conference call Wednesday that its communications revenue was up 20%, mostly because of 5G.
Texas Instruments (
TXN) shares
rose 6% while Xilinx (
XLNX)
surged nearly 20%. Chip equipment maker Lam Research (
LRCX), which also reported healthy results,
spiked 15%.
All of this good news should bode well for semiconductor giant Intel (
INTC), which reports earnings after the closing bell Thursday. Intel has been aggressively touting its own 5G products. Shares
rose 4% in early trading.