Susquehanna expects AI demand to drive semiconductor earnings upside in the third quarter, even as its price-target revisions diverge across major chipmakers.
- Susquehanna expects “modest upside” to third-quarter semiconductor earnings and fourth-quarter guidance, citing AI demand and a continuing broader industry upcycle.
- The firm raised its AMD price target to $620 from $550 and Qualcomm to $185 from $160, maintaining its ratings.
- Susquehanna cut targets on Coherent and Onsemi, but maintained ‘Positive’ ratings on both.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) and Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) saw their price targets raised by Susquehanna on Wednesday, while Intel Corp. (INTC) and Coherent Corp. (COHR) faced cuts as the firm revised its outlook for semiconductor stocks ahead of quarterly earnings.
Susquehanna expects “modest upside” to third-quarter earnings and fourth-quarter guidance, driven largely by artificial intelligence (AI) demand, while the broader semiconductor upcycle continues, according to The Fly.
At the time of this writing, QCOM and AMD stocks were trading nearly 1% higher, while COHR was up more than 1%. Meanwhile, INTC shares were in the red.
AMD, QCOM And SKWS See Higher Targets
Susquehanna raised AMD's price target to $620 from $550, maintaining a ‘Positive’ rating. It also raised QCOM’s target to $185 from $160 and Skyworks Solutions' (SWKS) target to $90 from $65, maintaining ‘Neutral’ ratings on both.
The revisions come as AMD expects third-quarter revenue of approximately $13 billion, plus or minus $300 million, representing roughly 41% year-over-year growth at the midpoint. AMD's second-quarter revenue rose 50% to $11.5 billion, including a 107% jump in data-center revenue to $6.7 billion, driven by demand for EPYC processors and Instinct graphics processing units.
Qualcomm, meanwhile, reported fiscal third-quarter revenue of $9.9 billion in July and expects non-handset revenue growth, including data centers, to exceed 60% in fiscal 2027, compared with 24% in fiscal 2026.
COHR, INTC And ON Face Target Cuts
Susquehanna cut its price targets by 20% for ON stock, about 18% for COHR stock, 17% for WOLF and 9% for INTC. The firm maintained ‘Positive’ ratings on Onsemi and Coherent and ‘Neutral’ ratings on Wolfspeed and Intel, according to The Fly.
Coherent, which supplies optical technologies used in AI infrastructure, reported fiscal fourth-quarter (Q4) revenue of $2.05 billion and forecast fiscal first-quarter (Q1) 2027 revenue of $2.2 billion to $2.4 billion.
Intel, meanwhile, forecast third-quarter revenue between $15.8 billion and $16.8 billion after reporting 25% year-over-year growth in second-quarter sales.
The target reductions came despite Susquehanna's broader expectations for modest upside in semiconductor earnings. The firm did not change its ratings on any of the seven companies.
| Company | Previous Target | New Target | Rating |
| AMD (AMD) | $550 | $620 | Positive |
| Qualcomm (QCOM) | $160 | $185 | Neutral |
| Skyworks (SWKS) | $65 | $90 | Neutral |
| Coherent (COHR) | $425 | $350 | Positive |
| Onsemi (ON) | $150 | $120 | Positive |
| Intel (INTC) | $115 | $105 | Neutral |
| Wolfspeed (WOLF) | $30 | $25 | Neutral |
What Comes Next For Chip Stocks?
Intel is scheduled to report third-quarter results on October 29, followed by AMD on November 3. The reports are expected to offer investors a clearer picture of whether AI-driven demand is translating into stronger revenue and earnings guidance across the semiconductor industry.
Retail Investors’ Sentiment Around Semiconductor Stocks?
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward AMD and INTC was ‘neutral,’ while COHR, SWKS, ON and WOLF were in ‘bearish’ territory. Sentiment around QCOM stock stood out as ‘extremely bearish’.
So far in 2026, AMD stock has gained over 143%, closely followed by Intel at 132%. ON stock has risen over 34%, WOLF shares about 23%, SWKS stock up nearly 27%, and COHR up around 21%. Qualcomm has lagged the group, gaining just over 2% so far this year.
See Also: Yardeni’s Meter Sees AI Bubble, But No Burst Yet — Only 9% Of Similar Cases Saw A Bear Market Within 2 Years
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