Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) mainly competes with Intel Corporation (INTC) in the server processor market. By our estimates, server processors constitute around 20% of AMD's stock price.

AMD's market share in server processors was at its peak in 2006, at around 25%, driven by the success of its Opteron series of processors. But very soon Intel regained its lost share by introducing the Xeon processor and releasing upgrades and newer products in the following years. AMD's loss was compounded when it was late in its launch of the Barcelona chip in 2008.

"Chip stocks have always been tough to invest in, as the group has vicious ups and downs," observes Mike Cintolo.

Nevertheless, explains, the editor of Cabot Top Ten Weekly, "Nvidia (NVDA) is one of the hottest stocks out there because investors think it might have the next big thing in the chip world-dubbed Tegra 2.

"Despite the volatility in the chip sector, history shows that many chip firms can produce huge gains if they have a unique new product that's serving a mass market (or, sometimes, a new market ... like camera cell phones back in the early 2000s).

"Texas Instruments (TXN) was roughed up pretty badly in 2008 and 2009. Profits fell sharply for this semiconductor giant, as did the stock price," says dividend reinvestment plan specialist Chuck Carlson.

The editor of The DRIP Investor explains, "The shares plummeted from nearly $40 per share in 2007 to $13 in early 2009. The stock has come roaring back from the 2009 lows, paced by impressive rebounds in sales and profits.

"For 2010, Texas Instruments should post record per-share profits in the vicinity of $2.47 per share. Based on that estimate, the stock seems cheap at less than 12 times earnings.

Intel Corporation (INTC), first discussed here on March 30, 2009 at a price of $14.72, posted second quarter earnings of 51 cents per share, well above the First Call estimate of 43 cents -- a performance that provides additional evidence that consumer/corporate tech spending continues to increase. And I obviously still like the shares here.

Intel also said it sees third quarter revenue of $11.2 billion to $12 billion -- well above the First Call estimate of $10.9 billion.

The above means Intel should post a 25-30% revenue gain in 2010, driven by
by inventory rebuilding, stronger orders for current/future microprocessors, and market share gains.

It's a volatile market out there, but investors shouldn't take that as a sign that they should run for the hills. The bottom line is that volatility can cut both ways -- and while most traders are more concerned with the downside risks, that shouldn't overshadow the potential for quick and substantial gains with a well-timed swing trade.

In my book, one of the best short-term buys you can make right now is a well-timed in and out in small cap tech stock Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (TSEM). Shares cost about as much as a fountain soda from the corner store, but have the potential to add a sugar rush to your portfolio very quickly.

There was little to complain about Broadcom's (BRCM) first quarter results. Revenues hit a record of $1.46 billion, up 71% from the same period a year ago. The consensus was for $1.38 billion. Also, Broadcom posted earnings of $210 million, or $0.40 per share, which compares to a loss of $92 million, or $0.19 per share in last year.

On the news, the shares of the company were up 4% to $36.31 in Wednesday morning trading.

The Street.com's Jim Cramer says that after a tough week, the semiconductor industry finally gets some good news.

Will Marvell Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL) (Cramer's Take) give what TriQuint (NASDAQ: TQNT) (Cramer's Take) and Broadcom (NASDAQ: BRCM) (Cramer's Take) took away?

Last week, we had the one-two punch of TriQuint and Broadcom really making the whole Internet tsunami look more like a tropical storm. They both talked about withering demand, and Broadcom verified the bears' double-order thesis, but this morning Marvell says that things are on target, there's no wavering and demand is strong. Bears can take their pick.

We have some good news to report in the technology sector. According to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required), global chip sales jumped 5% in August from the previous month, for a six month run of higher sales.

The Semiconductor Industry Association, which tracks sales, reported that gains were made in every sector. The Americas saw an increase of 5.4%, while the Asia Pacific region increased 5.3%. In terms of raw numbers, the Asia Pacific region accounts for more than half of global sales.

After the closing bell sounded yesterday, Novellus Systems (NASDAQ: NVLS) reported a second-quarter loss, thanks to falling semiconductor sales stemming from general weakness in the semiconductor sector.

The firm reported a second-quarter net loss of 52 cents per share, or 41 cents per share excluding items. Although this loss was three cents wider than the consensus estimate, the shares managed to bounce off their after-hours lows -- thanks mainly to NVLS's forecast.

Earnings season is getting into full swing and semiconductor giant Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) will be in line to tell investors just how well it was able to cope with the current recession tomorrow.

The chip maker is expected to show a sizable drop in earnings, with an expected 2 cents a share for the quarter. This compares with 25 cents a share that it was able to report for its first quarter last year.

One could make the case that this is the riskiest period for stocks, certainly since the late-1960s/early-1970s bear market, and perhaps longer.

The U.S. and global economies are in recession. International trade will likely decline substantially in 2009. And so far, the world hasn't identified which growth engines will replace the U.S. consumer, now the frugal U.S. consumer. This kind of environment sends most investors to the sidelines, but that doesn't mean there aren't bargains to be had for investors who can tolerate moderate risk -- and Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is one.

This post was written by Minyanville contributor Sean Udall. Sean holds position in RIMM, VMW, SUPX.

• Goldman Sachs upgraded Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM)saying to buy in front of EPS. I couldn't agree more and in fact was going to say that today. Be that as it may, I doubled my RIMM long into yesterday's weakness and plan to hold into/through EPS report. My quick take is that RIMM could have one of the better reports relative to all the negative analyst actions and commentary in tech and the overall market.
  
  
• One of my themes for this upcoming EPS season is to look for stocks that have had the most negative analyst commentary coming into the quarter, as no one these days is looking at things like Price/Sales, Price/Book or Price to normalized earnings.
  
  

Intel's announcement that it plans to freeze senior top executives salaries and revise its option pricing may is another cost-containment step by the company -- but one nevertheless not without some unanswered questions.

That's because although Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) said it would not grant raises to top professionals including CEO Paul Otellini and CFO Stacy Smith, Bloomberg News reported Monday, the proposed action, if approved by shareholders, will also allow employees to exchange underwater stock options for ones with a lower exercise price.

Semiconductor Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) had its turn in the earnings parade this afternoon, and the company put up dismal results that failed to meet analyst expectations.

Going into this afternoon's earnings report, analysts had been expecting to see the company show a loss of $0.09 per share, but the actual EPS for the quarter was a greater loss, one of $0.18 per share.

Can you believe it? The words 'invest,' 'manufacturing,' 'jobs,' and 'U.S.' in the same sentence.

No, it's not a joke. Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) announced Tuesday it will invest $7 billion over the next two years to build advanced manufacturing facilities in the United States, supporting about 7,000 jobs.

Intel said the investment will fund the build-out and deployment of the company's 32 nanometer (nm) manufacturing technology, which will be used to build faster, smaller chips that are also more energy-efficient.