Texas Instruments Boosts Guidance

Though commodity semiconductors now account for only about 5% of TI's semiconductor revenues, they made up 10% of the segment's revenue in 2000, when pricing was stronger. Slaymaker suggested there's a great deal of room for upside, given prices for commodity chips remain at less than half the level of 2000.

Chips have finished in the red for the past two sessions, presumably hurt by Intel's(INTC Quote) disappointing midquarter update last Thursday. Intel surprised many on the Street by lowering the midpoint of its first-quarter sales guidance.

"We're just generally in a weak semi space right now," noted Acree. "But I'm encouraged by the fact that stocks are selling off not because of bad news but just because the market was weak. That leads me to have some solace that fundamentals will eventually stabilize this space and position us for a stronger second half," he said. (Acree has a buy rating on TI; his firm hasn't done banking for the company.)

Early Tuesday, the Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor Index was up 0.1%.