Whatâs going on here? Investors went sweet on ASML on Wednesday, treating the stock to its best day since 2020 after the European semiconductor firm handed out far better-than-expected results. What does this mean? Orders for ASMLâs âEUVâ machines â the ultra-precise tools that help print the tiniest, most powerful circuits onto AI chips â hit âŹ3 billion last quarter, pushing the firmâs total bookings to nearly double what analysts predicted. That suggests its customers â including behemoth TSMC â are still rushing to produce all-important AI chips. But thatâs not to say ASML is without challenges: the broader chip market seems sluggish, Chinaâs economy leaves much to be desired, and major clients like Samsung and Intel are anticipating production hold-ups down the line. So while investors were impressed enough to send ASMLâs shares 12% higher, that only bumped the stock back to where it was last week â before DeepSeekâs App Store takeover prompted a tech selloff. Why should I care? For markets: ASML spies opportunity â and it doesnât matter where from. DeepSeekâs latest model claims to challenge Americaâs best, and the Chinese tech was trained at a fraction of the price. That news mightâve shaken global investorsâ confidence, but ASML still seems sure of itself. The logic: if AI tools get cheaper, businesses and individuals would be more inclined to buy them â and to keep up with higher sales, chipmakers would need to head straight to the likes of ASML. The bigger picture: Europe has magnificent qualities, too. While the US boasts the Magnificent Seven, Europe has the GRANOLAS: GSK, Roche, ASML, NestlĂ©, Novartis, LâOrĂ©al, LVMH, AstraZeneca, and SAP. And theyâve managed to keep pace with the S&P 500 over the years. Major European companies like these might not be as buzzy as their US peers, but they do tend to compensate by trading for less. And with SAPâs recent strong results and ASMLâs AI-fueled sales, the region can claim innovation to boot. |