The so-called “Magnificent Seven” were last year’s hot stocks, with investors piling into Alphabet , Amazon , Apple , Meta Platforms , Microsoft , Nvidia and Tesla . But for those looking for alternatives, UBS has refreshed its list of “highest conviction and most investable” tech stocks in Asia. The bank says these stocks are dominant in their market segments, like the Magnificent Seven, but are trading at cheaper valuations. Called the “Super 8,” the names are expected to “narrow [their] performance gap with the Magnificent 7 and outperform the rest of Asia over the next 12 months,” the investment bank’s analysts wrote in a July 11 research note. “With strong earnings growth prospects and attractive valuations compared to their global tech peers, we think these high-quality heavyweights offer attractive alternatives to the US ‘Magnificent 7′.” So far, UBS’ Asian Super 8 has gained 8.3% since its inception in February, beating the 6.7% returned by the benchmark MSCI Asia-Pacific index. “We believe the valuation discount across the value chain in Asia’s technology sector offers a defensive catch-up play for investors,” UBS’ analysts wrote. Here are UBS’ Super 8 stocks and their upside potential, according to FactSet’s consensus price targets: Tencent Chinese tech giant Tencent was among the latest additions to UBS’ list, thanks to what the bank described as its “relatively stable competitive environment, high earnings visibility, reasonable valuation and proactive capital management.” The company is UBS’ top pick in the China internet sector and is expected to “benefit from a turnaround in gaming revenue growth in China with potentially better-than-expected performance of new game launches and enhanced monetization from evergreen titles,” the analysts wrote. They also noted that further updates to its AI function integration — particularly on WeChat or Weixin — should speed up its AI monetization and lend more support to its growth momentum. Tencent has been making headlines recently, with several analysts bullish, including Goldman Sachs , which included the stock in its conviction list. The stock is listed in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and as an American Depositary Receipt (ADR) in the U.S. Shares in the tech giant are up 32.9% year-to-date. Hon Hai Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry — the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer — is another addition to the Super 8, as it is “well positioned to benefit from AI exposure particularly through its AI server and smartphone assembly businesses.” The company, which also goes by the name Foxconn, is expecting over 40% year-on-year growth in its AI server sub-segment this year, UBS’ analysts noted. As Apple’s main assembler, Hon Hai is well placed to benefit from demand push from the iPhone 16 launch, they added. Shares in Hon Hai are traded on the Taiwan Stock Exchange and in the U.S. as an ADR . Its shares are on an uptrend, gaining nearly 107.2% year-to-date. Lenovo Lenovo was another company that just made the Super 8 list. UBS likes that it has the “potential to grow by providing various end devices for AI technology.” “We expect AI’s higher requirements of computing power and new AI functions to support demand for Lenovo’s end devices.” For instance, the analysts expect the launch of AI-powered personal computers and Microsoft’s Copilot to boost demand for Lenovo’s AI-powered systems from the second half of the year. Shares in Lenovo are traded on the Hong Kong Exchange and in the U.S. as an ADR . Its shares have been falling but have gained nearly 0.4% year-to-date. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
Original news source Credit: www.cnbc.com
Apple Inc, Business News, Lenovo Group Ltd, Microsoft Corp, Tencent Holdings Ltd, UBS Group AG, United States
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