Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is scheduled to report second-quarter results on Thursday. Here is what you need to know:
NET PROFIT: The world's largest contract chip maker's net profit likely climbed 57% from a year earlier to 624.00 billion New Taiwan dollars, equivalent to US$19.38 billion. That would be its fifth consecutive quarter of record earnings, driven by continued strong artificial-intelligence demand.
REVENUE: The Taiwanese chip maker's second-quarter revenue increased 36% to NT$1.270 trillion, in line with the company's guidance of between US$39.0 billion and US$40.2 billion.
Shares of the company rose 37% in the second quarter, taking year-to-date gains to 55%. TSMC, along with other AI hardware makers--the companies that build the chips and servers powering AI data centers--were the biggest beneficiaries in the first half of the year. They shrugged off geopolitical uncertainties, capitalizing on soaring demand for AI hardware driven by hyperscalers' massive investments.
WHAT TO WATCH:
--Some analysts expect TSMC to raise its revenue forecast again, after TSMC in April upgraded its 2026 revenue growth projection to above 30% from around 30%, citing continued demand for leading-edge chips and improving visibility in the longer term. Morgan Stanley has a 36% revenue growth forecast in U.S. dollar terms. Citi analysts noted that TSMC's biggest advantage lies in its production capacity: "This scale advantage should continue supporting wafer pricing, customer stickiness and gross margin sustainability despite increasing foundry competition."
--Investors will pay attention to TSMC's comments on capital expenditure as the company strives to meet insatiable AI demand. Morgan Stanley estimated TSMC's 2026-2028 capital expenditure could reach US$200 billion, while Bernstein expects the chip maker's 2026 and 2027 capex at US$56 billion and US$68 billion, respectively.
--The market will also focus on management comments regarding TSMC's capacity expansion and 2-nanometer chip ramp up. Chief Executive C.C. Wei said at an annual shareholders' meeting in June that TSMC isn't falling behind in next-generation chip making amid heightened industry competition, with Samsung Electronics and Intel pushing to close the gap on the Taiwanese company.
Write to Sherry Qin at sherry.qin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 14, 2026 00:52 ET (04:52 GMT)
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