AMD shrugs off tech sell-off, hits record high

In this Sept. 10, 2007 file photo, a staff technician presents a 300 millimeter chip wafer at Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) in Dresden, eastern Germany. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 announced its first-quarter loss widened as demand and prices for its microprocessors slumped and heavy restructuring charges took their toll. Shares fell more than 6 percent in after-hours trading on disappointing guidance.AP Photo/Matthias Rietschel

• AMD shares surged to a record high on Wednesday after Bank of America Merrill Lynch lifted its price target to a Street high $35.
•  Jefferies raised its price target on Tuesday.
• Watch AMD trade in real time here.

AMD shares climbed as much as 4%, to a record high of $29.93 apiece, on Wednesday despite much of the tech sector coming under pressure as Twitter and Facebook executives testified before Congress. 

Wednesday’s gains were fueled by Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Vivek Arya raised his price target from $25 to $35, the highest on Wall Street, citing an improving mix towards higher-value computing and graphics versus low-margin consoles.

Arya sees “potential for less restrictive wafer supply agreement from main fab GlobalFoundries’ recent exit from high-end manufacturing, enabling AMD to further leverage fab leader TSMC,” according to Bloomberg.

Arya’s new price target comes one day after Jefferies raised its price target to $30 from $22.

“We have higher conviction that in 2H19, AMD will ship a server MPU with higher transistor density than INTC for the first time in recent history, if not ever,” Jefferies analyst Mark Lipacis said in a notes sent to clients on Tuesday.

“We see this as a foundational shift in competitive dynamics. Meanwhile, our checks also suggest that AMD continues to take share in high-end notebooks.”

Following Jefferies note, AMD rose more than 8% on Tuesday. AMD now has 14 buys, 13 holds and 4 sells, with average price target of $19, according to Bloomberg data.

AMD shares have gained 163% this year.

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