Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. heads into its first-quarter earnings report with the market already convinced that demand is strong. The harder question now is whether the numbers due on Thursday can prove the AI chip boom is still translating into rising profits.
Taiwan Semiconductor's Q1 revenues are expected to reflect the benefits of surging demand for its advanced chips amid rising capital expenditure on AI infrastructure buildouts.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM) is set to report earnings before the opening bell Thursday, with traders expecting the chip manufacturing giant's stock could near February's highs following the results.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing is central to the AI and data center boom, with revenue growth now driven by surging AI inference and memory demand. TSM guides for Q1 revenue of $34.6–$35.8B (nearly 40% YoY growth), with margins expected to remain strong despite overseas expansion and supply chain risks. Advanced chips (7nm and below) now comprise 77% of wafer revenue; TSMC's 2nm node is in mass production, with next-gen A16 family planned for 2027–2028.
TSM's Q1 revenues are likely to have benefited from AI-driven chip demand, while rising costs due to overseas expansions may have hurt profitability.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. tops estimates on AI chip demand; revenues jump 35%. Pricing power boosts margins, ETFs with TSM exposure in focus.
TSMC is the critical bottleneck in the AI semiconductor supply chain, with 2nm and 3nm capacity fully sold out into 2027 and beyond. TSM's advanced node and CoWoS packaging capacity are running at or above 100% utilization, with demand outstripping supply despite aggressive expansion. TSM trades at a significant valuation discount (10x FY27E EPS) versus peers, despite superior growth, margins, and multi-year visibility on AI-driven demand.
TSMC, the world's largest manufacturer of advanced artificial intelligence chips, will likely notch up a fourth consecutive quarter of record earnings with a 50% surge in net profit for January-March thanks to booming demand for AI infrastructure.
AI chips are still in high demand. Earnings reports in the next few weeks will show if that's good enough for investors.
There's a semiconductor stock in the market that Wall Street is quickly learning to appreciate, and the sooner you get in, the better.
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TSM stock jumps 20% YTD, fueled by AI demand and strong earnings, but rising risks and premium valuation may keep investors cautious for now.