Wedbush在联电二季度业绩后上调目标价但维持中性，称成熟制程短期改善但扩产可能引发AI支出担忧

Wedbush increased its price target on United Microelectronics (UMC) to NT$110 from NT$80 while keeping its Neutral rating after the Taiwanese foundry's second quarter results.
Analyst Matt Bryson said that United handily exceeded its implied initial guide and Street consensus with better shipments and pricing, boosting revenue by over 10% and gross margins by 330 basis points, or bps, sequentially. Moreover, guidance for shipment growth in the high single digits and mid 30s GMs suggests management is anticipating very similar sequentials in the current quarter, the analysts added.
"Net, all appears good with UMC's near-term prospects (and the state of mature foundry). At the same time, we believe UMC's newly announced capacity build-out could yield investor angst, particularly given recent fears around the sustainability of AI data center spend, with current and future AI requirements the primary factor supporting UMC's recent outperformance, while new AI related opportunities are driving the foundry's planned capacity adds," said Bryson.
The analysts noted that given their view that data center spending is not at risk, they see room to become more constructive, particularly if United's stock continues to pull back on concerns around the sustainability of AI investment.
The results are also a positive for GlobalFoundries (GFS) and Tower Semiconductor (TSEM). "We see better UMC utilization rates and higher ASPs [average selling prices] as a positive signal for the mature foundry space," said the analyst.