For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – February 21, 2024 – Today, Zacks Equity Research discusses Entegris ENTG and Veeco Instruments VECO.
Industry: Electronics
Link: https://www.zacks.com/commentary/2228611/2-electronics-stocks-to-watch-from-a-challenging-industry
The Zacks Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery industry is suffering from challenging macroeconomic conditions globally. Softness in the 3D NAND end-market has been a headwind. However, industry participants are benefiting from increased capital spending on high-performance computing, AI, mobility, augmented reality and virtual reality, advanced packaging, lithography and wet processing solutions by semiconductor manufacturers.
The ongoing transformation in cloud computing is noteworthy. Entegris and Veeco Instruments are gaining from the above-mentioned trends. These companies provide solutions to semiconductor manufacturers and OEMs. Strength in cloud & data centers, healthcare and automotive has been the key catalysts for these industry participants.
Industry Description
The Zacks Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery industry comprises companies that provide a range of solutions to address the needs of wafer processing facilities, as well as device packaging and test facilities, of semiconductor manufacturing processes. The solutions offered by the industry participants include thin-film processing systems, photonics, process-control tools (that perform macro defect inspections and metrology), metal-organic chemical vapor deposition, advanced packaging lithography, wet etch and clean, laser annealing and 3D wafer inspection systems.
A few industry participants also offer micro-contamination control products and advanced material-handling solutions. Notably, contamination-free transportation, storage and delivery of materials have gained immense significance in recent times.
3 Trends Shaping the Future of the Electronics Industry
Miniaturization Enhances Prospects: Industry participants are benefiting from the ongoing transition in semiconductor manufacturing technology. The demand for advanced packaging, which enables the miniaturization of electronic products, remains strong. The consistent shift to smaller dimensions and the rapid adoption of new device architecture like FinFET transistors and 3D-NAND, along with the increasing utilization of new manufacturing materials to increase transistor and bit density, are driving the demand for solutions provided by the industry players.
Moreover, the emergence of techniques like wafer-level packaging is driving the need for a high-purity manufacturing environment free of contaminants. The rising demand for clean processing, as well as wafer carrier cleaning and conditioning tools, is a key catalyst for the industry participants.
Complex Process Driving Demand: The requirement for faster, more powerful and energy-efficient semiconductors is expected to increase rapidly with the robust adoption of cloud computing, IoT and AI. Semiconductor manufacturers like Intel, Samsung and Taiwan Semiconductors are primarily looking to maximize manufacturing yields at lower costs. This is making semiconductor manufacturing processes more complex and driving the demand for solutions offered by industry participants. The rapid adoption of IoT-supported factory automation solutions is another contributing factor. The increasing deployment of 5G and the growing demand for edge computing are other key catalysts.
NAND, DRAM & SSD Demand Strong: The improving demand for NAND and DRAM is a positive for the industry participants. Strong SSD demand, driven by data center and cloud spending, is another key catalyst. DRAM is expected to benefit from strong demand in the data center, enterprise and cloud segments. Strong demand for chips and higher spending on semiconductor capital equipment are aiding the industry participants.
Zacks Industry Rank Indicates Dim Prospects
The Zacks Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery industry is housed within the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector. It carries a Zacks Industry Rank #238, which places it in the bottom 5% of more than 250 Zacks industries.
The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, which is the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates dim near-term prospects. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than two to one.
The industry’s position in the bottom 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries is a result of the negative earnings outlook for the constituent companies in aggregate. Looking at the aggregate earnings estimate revisions, it appears that analysts are pessimistic about this group’s earnings growth potential. Since Oct 31, 2023, the industry’s earnings estimates for 2024 have decreased 27%.
Despite the dim industry outlook, a few stocks are worth watching. However, before we present the stocks that you may want to consider for your portfolio, let’s take a look at the industry’s recent stock-market performance and valuation picture.
Industry Lags Sector, Beats S&P 500
The Zacks Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery industry has underperformed the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector but beat the S&P 500 composite over the past year.
The industry has returned 28.2% over this period compared with the S&P 500’s growth of 25.4% and the broader sector’s increase of 49.5%.
Industry's Current Valuation
On the basis of the trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA ratio, which is a commonly used multiple for valuing Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery companies, we see that the industry is trading at 14.13X compared with the S&P 500’s 13.8X. It is below the sector’s trailing 12-month EV/EBITDA of 14.21X.
Over the last five years, the industry has traded as high as 14.13X and as low as 7.69X, with the median being 11.3X.
2 Electronics Stocks to Watch Right Now
Veeco Instruments – This Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) company is a manufacturer of advanced semiconductor process equipment. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Headquartered in Plainview, New York, Veeco is benefiting from an expanding portfolio and strong clientele. Launch of next-generation nanosecond annealing solution and ion beam deposition system for low-resistance metals are expected to drive top-line growth.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Veeco’s 2024 earnings has been steady at $1.81 per share over the past 30 days. Shares have returned 14.3% year to date.
Entegris: This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company is a leading supplier of advanced materials and process solutions for the semiconductor and other high-technology industries. It is riding on a growing recurring revenue base.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ENTG’s 2024 earnings has declined by a couple of cents to $3.24 per share over the past 30 days. Shares have returned 14.2% year to date.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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