Explore the latest developments concerning SMH vs. SOXX.
Selling Pressure in Chip Stocks Is Easing. Is SMH the Best Way to Play the Rebound?
This year has been a wild ride for the chip sector; there's no denying it. In February, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and others all predicted enormous capital expenditures for 2026 to build out their artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.That caused an investor panic that wiped out $1 trillion in short order in AI stocks, followed by a rough March amid the ongoing chaos caused by the Iran war.
Amid all this volatility, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ: SMH) — despite dipping 13% between the end of January and the end of March — is up 30% over the past month, and 40% year to date. It seems as though no amount of uncertainty is derailing this train.
Semiconductor Leaders SOXX, SMH, and FTXL Are Crushing It on AI Infrastructure Demand
iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) is up 60% year-to-date with balanced U.S. exposure across 30 semiconductor names under modified market-cap weighting; VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) has climbed 45% with concentrated weighting to NVIDIA and TSMC plus foreign exposure through ADRs; First Trust Nasdaq Semiconductor ETF (FTXL) has surged 74% year-to-date by using volatility and growth factors to underweight mega-caps in favor of mid-cap semiconductor names. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) posted Q1 revenue of $10.25B (up 38% YoY) with Data Center segment revenue of $5.78B (up 57% YoY) and raised Q2 guidance to $11.20B, reflecting accelerating AI infrastructure demand across the supply chain.
The breadth of AI infrastructure buildout—spanning accelerators, CPUs, networking chips, memory, and equipment—is widening the semiconductor cycle beyond the mega-cap leaders, validating the performance divergence between these three ETF structures as each captures different angles on the supercycle.
JHK 64"x21" Full Body Wall Mirror Standing Hanging or Leaning Wall-Mounted Mirrors with Stand Aluminum Alloy Frame Living Room
The dynamic landscape of current events often brings forth significant discussions. Monitoring these developments provides crucial insights.
For more detailed information, explore updates concerning SMH vs. SOXX.