Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is set to launch its Llano APU in Q3 of 2011 to compete with Intel's (INTC) Sandy Bridge. Here we take a look at how these two processors stack up against each other. AMD also competes with Nvidia (NVDA) in the PC microprocessor and graphics businesses.

Our price estimate for AMD stands at $8.85, which is roughly in line with market price.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) competes with Intel (INTC) and Nvidia (NVDA) in the PC microprocessor and graphics businesses. Our price estimate for AMD stands at $9.30, which is roughly in line with market price. We estimate that although most of the company's value comes from microprocessor business, about 14% can be attributed to graphics.

One of the recent wins in this regard was Apple's (AAPL) plan to use AMD's graphics cards in its Macbook Pro notebooks. What does this tell us about AMD?

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) competes with Intel (INTC)and Nvidia (NVDA) in the PC microprocessor and graphics businesses. Our price estimate for AMD stands at $9.30, which is roughly in line with market price. The company recently launched a marketing campaign to better promote its products against competitors. Intel, for one, has continuously overshadowed AMD. Does AMD's stock value stand to gain from these initiatives? Here we assess the outlook for a few key metrics.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD - option chain) stock is trading lower today after the company announced the resignation of CEO Dirk Meyer, naming Thomas Seifert interim CEO. Investors are surprised by this announcement, since Meyer took over AMD when the company was floundering and has since stabilized AMD. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on AMD.

This morning, AMD opened at $8.77. So far today the stock has hit a high of $8.80 and a low of $8.35. As of 12:25, AMD is trading at $8.49, down $0.70 (-7.6%). The chart for AMD looks neutral and S&P gives AMD a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.

Call volume is unusually heavy on Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) today, with nearly 8,300 contracts changing hands during the first hour of the session -- easily outpacing the stock's average daily call activity of 6,774 contracts. However, the day's option volume isn't necessarily bullish in nature.

Nearly all of today's volume has taken place at AMD's January 2012 7.50 call, where a block of 8,000 contracts traded at the bid price -- suggesting they were most likely sold. This block appears to have been tied to a corresponding stock trade, which means we're likely seeing the initiation of a buy-write position.

We may soon see "one of the biggest advances in years in the technology that powers laptop and desktop computers," according to the Wall Street Journal, as chipmakers begin to merge microprocessors and graphics-processing units.

Microprocessors are described as "the calculating engines that run most PC software," while graphics-processing units "render images in video games and other programs." According to the report, Intel (INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are expected to make announcements about this move at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is scheduled to take its turn in the earnings confessional after Thursday's close, with analysts looking for a third-quarter profit of 6 cents per share on $1.67 billion in sales. AMD swallowed a loss of 18 cents per share in the year-ago quarter, leaving plenty of room for improvement.

The semiconductor company has a solid history on the earnings front, having surpassed analysts' per-share profit expectations in each of the past four quarters. However, traders don't seem convinced that AMD can manage another upside surprise.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has fared poorly so far this year. The one-year chart is a somewhat depressing figure to look at for long-term shareholders. But will things change going forward?

Earlier this week, Intel (INTC) delivered an impressive quarter; I came away with positive thoughts about the chip maker's long-term prospects. Now, we have Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and its own three-month release to ponder. How was the price action after Q1 results were posted on Thursday following the conclusion of the normal session?

Lousy, at least at the time I was writing this. Shares of AMD tumbled 5% in extended trading. Quite disappointing, when you think about it. After all, the stock had hit a new 52-week high during intraday activities before the report. And the volume? You couldn't ask for a better number of shares in play. There was great conviction behind the buying activity.

Intel (INTC), whose colleagues include Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Texas Instruments (TXN), had a nice time during yesterday's after-hours trading. The company's stock was met with buying approval after the impressive first-quarter earnings report was posted. How should investors feel about the stock now?

Well, investors should feel pretty good, I believe. The price action has been encouraging. First, if you examine the one-year chart, you'll see that the stock has been trending higher. Admittedly, it's not the smoothest-looking uptrend, but overall, I think the chip maker is going to continue to climb higher. And the stock has certainly come a long way from the 52-week low.

Intel Corporation (INTC) and scrappy Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) are two tech companies that have been fighting in the microprocessor market for longer than many of us care to remember. Intel controls the majority of the PC processor market for consumer machines and business servers, but AMD always seems to be there to mop up market share with as much gusto as it can. Enter the latest battle originating from AMD's end: recruiting the red-hot Acer to power its servers with AMD chips.

Chip-maker Intel (INTC), whose colleagues include Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Texas Instruments (TXN), issued fourth-quarter data yesterday after the bell. Shareholders must have loved the growth rates. Revenues increased 28% on a year-over-year basis. Adjusted net income on a dollar basis grew well over 200%. Adjusted per-share profit came in at 55 cents versus 15 cents in the comparable period.

As for expectations, Earnings.com says that the market was looking for 30 cents per share. Some coverage compared the 30-cent projection to the reported GAAP income number of 40 cents per share, instead of the non-GAAP number I mentioned above, which would make the earnings beat not as impressive. I usually deal with non-GAAP figures, but either way, Intel has gone above estimates in significant fashion.

The Federal Reserve's first Beige Book report of the year is due out this week. The report is a compilation of anecdotal information on current economic conditions from each of the 12 Federal Reserve Bank districts. The data comes from interviews with business contacts, economists, market experts, and other sources. The previous report, released in December, showed modest improvement in eight of the districts, while the October report confirmed that the economy was stabilizing after earlier declines.