Raising Our Fair Value Estimate for ASML to EUR 900; TSMC Adoption of High-NA EUV Improves Certainty
We believe ASML will remain the top lithography equipment provider in semiconductor foundries for at least the next two decades. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Intel, and Samsung’s fabs were redesigned one decade ago to make them suitable for extreme ultraviolet lithography, or EUV, a costly and long endeavor, so it is quite unlikely ASML will be displaced from its place in the foundry. In addition, no competitor has yet matched ASML’s technological leadership and the company’s competitive advantage will likely keep expanding as it grows its already-high EUR 4 billion research and development budget.