Semiconductor stocks to watch in 2026: Market leaders, and what investors should know

The semiconductor industry sits at the center of the global economy, powering artificial intelligence, cloud computing, electric vehicles, smartphones, industrial automation, and more.

As we move deeper into the AI-driven investment cycle, many investors are searching for semiconductor stocks to watch in 2026. Before diving into specific companies, it’s important to explain how this list was developed.

This list of semiconductor stocks is based on a combination of:

Firms positioned to benefit from long-term tailwinds including:

• Data center expansion

• High-bandwidth memory (HBM)

• Advanced manufacturing nodes

• Artificial intelligence infrastructure

• Semiconductor equipment demand

Rather than focusing only on chip designers, this list includes:

• Foundries

• Memory manufacturers

• Semiconductor equipment makers

• Fabless semiconductor companies

• Electronic design automation (EDA) providers

This diversified approach reflects how value is created across the semiconductor supply chain.

Nvidia is a leading developer of graphics processing units. Traditionally, GPUs were used to enhance the experience on computing platforms, most notably in gaming applications on PCs. GPU use cases have since emerged as important semiconductors used in artificial intelligence to run large language models (LLMs).

Nvidia not only offers AI GPUs, but also a software platform, Cuda, used for AI model development and training. The company is also expanding its data center networking solutions, helping to tie GPUs together to handle complex workloads.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Dominant position in AI accelerators

• Strong data center revenue growth

• Expanding AI ecosystem and software moat

• Nvidia represents exposure to the core AI infrastructure theme.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is the world's largest dedicated chip foundry, with about 70% market share in 2025. TSMC was founded in 1987 as a joint venture of Philips, the government of Taiwan, and private investors.

It went public in Taiwan in 1994 and as an ADR in the US in 1997. TSMC's scale and high-quality technology allow the firm to generate solid operating margins, even in the highly competitive foundry business. Furthermore, the shift to the fabless business model has created tailwinds for TSMC.

The foundry leader has an illustrious base of customers, including Apple, AMD, and Nvidia, that look to apply its cutting-edge process technologies to their semiconductor designs. TSMC employs more than 83,000 people.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Critical supplier to top AI chip designers

• Leadership in advanced node manufacturing

• Beneficiary of long-term semiconductor demand growth

• TSMC provides exposure to semiconductor manufacturing rather than chip design.

Broadcom is one of the largest semiconductor companies in the world and has also expanded into infrastructure software. Its semiconductors primarily serve computing, wired connectivity, and wireless connectivity.

It has a significant position in custom AI chips to train and run inference for large language models. It is primarily a fabless designer but holds some manufacturing in-house.

In software, it sells virtualization, infrastructure, and security software to large enterprises, financial institutions, and governments. Broadcom is the product of consolidation. Its businesses are an amalgamation of former companies like legacy Broadcom and Avago Technologies in chips, as well as VMware, Brocade, CA Technologies, and Symantec in software.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Strong networking portfolio

• AI-driven infrastructure demand

• Diversified semiconductor and software business

• Broadcom offers exposure to AI infrastructure beyond GPUs.

Advanced Micro Devices designs a variety of digital semiconductors for markets such as PCs, gaming consoles, data centers (including artificial intelligence), industrial, and automotive applications.

AMD's traditional strength was in central processing units and graphics processing units used in PCs and data centers. However, AMD is emerging as a prominent player in AI GPUs and related hardware.

Additionally, the firm supplies the chips found in prominent game consoles such as the Sony PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Growing AI chip offerings

• Diversified compute exposure

• Competitive positioning in data center CPUs

• AMD represents a competitive alternative within high-performance computing.

Micron is one of the largest semiconductor companies in the world, specializing in memory and storage chips. Its primary revenue stream comes from dynamic random access memory, or DRAM, and it also has minority exposure to not-and or NAND, flash chips.

Micron serves a global customer base, selling chips into data centers, mobile phones, consumer electronics, and industrial and automotive applications. The firm is vertically integrated.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Exposure to HBM growth

• Memory cycle recovery potential

• Critical role in AI server builds

• Memory remains one of the most cyclical — and potentially high-upside — segments of semiconductors.

ASML is the leader in lithography systems for manufacturing semiconductors with 90% market share. Lithography is the process in which a light source is used to expose circuit patterns from a photo mask onto a semiconductor wafer.

Lithography allows chipmakers to increase the number of transistors on the same area of silicon, with lithography historically representing a high portion of the cost of making cutting-edge chips.

ASML outsources the manufacturing of most of its parts, acting like an assembler. ASML's largest clients are TSMC, Samsung, and Intel.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Near-monopoly in advanced lithography

• Essential supplier to leading-edge fabs

• Structural demand tied to advanced nodes

KLA is one of the largest semiconductor wafer fabrication equipment, or WFE, manufacturers in the world. It specializes in the market segment of semiconductor process control, wherein machines inspect semiconductor wafers during research and development and manufacturing for defects and verify precise measurements.

In this section of the market, KLA holds a majority share. It also has a small exposure to the etch and deposition segments of the WFE market. It counts as top customers the largest chipmakers in the world, including TSMC and Samsung.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• Beneficiaries of semiconductor capex cycles

• Critical to manufacturing yield and scaling

• Strong industry positioning

Cadence Design Systems is a provider of electronic design automation software, intellectual property, and system design and analysis products.

EDA software automates and aids in the chip design process, enhancing design accuracy, productivity, and complexity in a full-flow end-to-end solution.

Cadence offers a portfolio of design IP, as well as system design and analysis products, which enables system-level analysis and verification solutions.

Why it’s a semiconductor stock to watch in 2026:

• High-margin recurring revenue model

• Growing complexity of chip design

• Exposure to AI chip development

The semiconductor industry underpins nearly every modern technology trend, and primarily key industries such as:

1. AI infrastructure spending

2. Data center expansion

3. Automotive electrification

4. Industrial automation

5. Edge computing

However, investors should remember:

• The sector is cyclical

• Valuations can become stretched during AI hype cycles

• Geopolitical risks and supply chain disruptions remain real

• Capital expenditure swings can impact profitability

When researching semiconductor investments, consider:

1. Revenue growth trends

2. Gross margin stability

3. Customer concentration risk

4. Exposure to AI vs. cyclical end markets

5. Valuation relative to earnings growth

6. Capital intensity and balance sheet strength

Diversifying your portfolio across semiconductor segments — designers, foundries, equipment makers, and memory — may reduce concentration risk.

The semiconductor stocks to watch in 2026 are likely to be companies that combine:

• Technological leadership

• Exposure to AI infrastructure

• Strong financial performance

• Strategic positioning within the global supply chain

That said, no stock is guaranteed to outperform, and semiconductor equities can experience significant volatility. This article is intended as a starting point for research, not a recommendation. Past performance does not guarantee future returns. Always conduct your own due diligence and consider your investment objectives before allocating capital.

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