The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC +1.52%) has tumbled 3% year to date, and that slight decline has created some no-brainer buying opportunities. The market reacted too pessimistically to the latest reports from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 0.03%) and The Trade Desk (TTD 1.36%). Investors can now buy one share of both stocks for less than $200.
Here's the bull case for these artificial intelligence (AI) stocks.
NASDAQ: AMD
Key Data Points
1. Advanced Micro Devices
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) develops semiconductors across four main end markets: data center, client (personal laptops and desktops), gaming, and embedded processors. The chipmaker generates most of its revenue from central processing units (CPUs) and graphics processing units (GPUs), also known as AI accelerators.
Last year, AMD gained about seven percentage points of market share in x86 CPU sales at Intel's expense. It gave a particularly strong showing in the client segment, where its Ryzen processors took over eight percentage points of market share from Intel Core processors. But AMD also kept its momentum in the data center segment, where its Epyc processors took four points of market share from Intel Xeon chips.
AMD reported reasonably strong fourth-quarter financial results, exceeding estimates on the top and bottom lines. Total revenue increased 24% to $7.6 billion, and non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) earnings increased 42% to $1.09 per diluted share. But the market punished AMD for missing data center sales estimates, which itself was due to worse-than-expected results in its AI business. The stock has tumbled 16% since the report.
That creates an opportunity for investors. While AMD is unlikely to take much market share in AI accelerators from Nvidia, simply maintaining its position should still result in strong sales growth. Grand View Research expects AI accelerator spending to increase at 29% annually through 2030. Indeed, AMD CEO Lisa Su said on the fourth-quarter earnings call that AI accelerator sales will increase from $5 billion in 2024 to "tens of billions of dollars of annual revenue over the coming years."
However, the market may be disappointed with AMD playing a distant second fiddle to Nvidia -- so much so that the stock looks downright cheap. Wall Street estimates AMD's earnings will grow at 35% annually through 2026. Yet, shares trade at 30 times earnings, which gives the company a price-to-earnings-to-growth (PEG) ratio below 1. This means that now is a good time to buy a small position.
NASDAQ: TTD
Key Data Points
2. The Trade Desk
The Trade Desk is an adtech company that provides an independent demand-side platform (DSP) to media buyers. Its software leans on AI to help clients automate, optimize, and measure data-driven campaigns. Its independence (meaning it does not own media) is a key advantage because it eliminates the possibility of bias.
Put differently, whereas Alphabet and Amazon have a clear incentive to steer media buyers toward platforms like Google Search and Amazon Marketplace, The Trade Desk avoids conflicts of interest by not owning ad inventory. That company has exploited that facet of its business to build mutually beneficial relationships with publishers.
For instance, The Trade Desk sources data from many of the world's largest retail companies, which creates unique measurement opportunities for advertisers on its platform. Indeed, CEO Jeff Green says The Trade Desk has "the most advanced data-driven decision-making platform" in the adtech industry.
Frost & Sullivan ranked The Trade Desk as the leader in its most recent DSP report, awarding the company better scores than competitors like Alphabet's Google and Amazon. One reason for the high rating was the company's strong presence in retail advertising market, which itself is due to its "growing roster of retail partners."
The Trade Desk reported disappointing financial results in the fourth quarter. Revenue increased 22% to $741 million, missing the $756 million forecasted by management, and non-GAAP earnings increased 44% to $0.59 per diluted share. Green attributed the revenue shortfall to a "series of small execution missteps," and he detailed changes the company has made to address the issues, including injecting more AI features into the platform.
However, the stock tumbled 42% since the company reported earnings, creating a no-brainer opportunity for patient investors. Wall Street estimates The Trade Desk's earnings will increase at 15% annually through 2026. That makes the current valuation of 42 times earnings look expensive. But I think analysts are wrong for two reasons.
First, Wall Street underestimated earnings by an average of 8% during the last six quarters. Second, Grand View Research estimates adtech software spending will increase at 22% annually through 2030. As the largest independent DSP, The Trade Desk should be able to match that pace. That's why patient investors should buy a small position today.
