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KLAC vs UMC
Which Stock Would AI Choose? KLA Corporation (KLAC) vs. United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- KLAC, a leader in semiconductor process control equipment, has outperformed UMC, a pure-play foundry, with year-to-date gains around 55-59% compared to UMC's 46-54%.
- KLAC boasts a significantly larger market capitalization of approximately $248-254 billion versus UMC's $30 billion, reflecting its dominant position in the sector.
- Recent momentum shows KLAC surging nearly 40% over the past month amid AI-driven demand, while UMC has risen around 34% but faces pricing pressures.
- KLAC trades at a higher price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of about 55x versus UMC's 23x, indicating premium valuation for its growth profile.
- Tickeron's trending AI bots frequently include KLAC in high-performing semiconductor strategies, signaling algorithmic preference.
Introduction
In the booming semiconductor sector fueled by artificial intelligence and advanced computing demands, KLAC and UMC represent contrasting plays: one in critical inspection equipment and the other in wafer manufacturing. This stock comparison analyzes their business models, recent performance, and market positioning to help traders and investors gauge relative strengths amid cyclical industry dynamics. Semiconductor enthusiasts, growth-oriented portfolios, and AI-themed strategies may find value in understanding these differences for diversified exposure or tactical trades.
KLAC Overview and Recent Performance
KLAC (KLA Corporation) specializes in process control and yield management systems essential for semiconductor manufacturing, enabling chipmakers to detect defects and optimize production. In recent market activity, KLAC shares have rallied sharply, with one-month gains exceeding 39% and year-to-date returns around 55-59%, driven by surging demand for wafer fabrication equipment (WFE) tied to AI chip production. The stock recently hit new 52-week highs near $1,939, supported by strong quarterly results and analyst upgrades, including UBS raising its target to $1,835. Positive sentiment stems from robust revenue growth to $12.74 billion (trailing twelve months) and high profit margins over 35%, positioning KLAC as a key beneficiary of industry upcycles.
UMC Overview and Recent Performance
UMC (United Microelectronics Corporation) operates as a leading independent semiconductor foundry, producing integrated circuits on wafers for fabless chip designers. Recent weeks have seen UMC shares advance about 34% monthly and 46-54% year-to-date, bolstered by March sales growth of nearly 5% and strategic partnerships in thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) photonics for AI data centers. Trading around $12, the stock reflects resilience despite foundry pricing headwinds, with trailing revenue of $237.55 billion and a solid 17.6% profit margin. Investor interest has grown, evidenced by heightened watchlist additions and dividend appeal at 3.9% yield.
Trending AI Robots
Tickeron's Trending AI Robots page showcases the top 25 performers from its library of 351 AI trading bots, curated for current market conditions across stocks, ETFs, and crypto. These bots employ diverse strategies like trend-following and machine learning on timeframes from 5 minutes to 60 days, with standout annualized returns ranging from 44% to over 127%, win rates of 54-88%, and profit factors up to 6.94. Semiconductor-focused bots, such as those trading KLAC, LRCX, and AMAT (103% annualized return, 64% win rate), or NVDA and peers (70% return), highlight sector strength. Traders can copy these real-time signals to automate strategies tailored to volatility. Explore the page to identify bots matching your risk profile and timeframe.
Head-to-Head Comparison
KLAC and UMC both thrive in semiconductors but differ in business models: KLAC provides high-margin equipment (ROE over 100%) versus UMC's capacity-driven foundry operations (ROE around 11%). Growth drivers include AI infrastructure for both, yet KLAC benefits from upstream WFE spending, yielding superior one-year returns of 178% against UMC's 66-77%. Recent momentum favors KLAC's 40% monthly surge over UMC's 34%, though UMC offers lower valuation and higher dividend yield. Risk profiles show KLAC's higher beta (1.4-1.8) amplifying volatility, while UMC's beta near 1 provides relative stability. Market sentiment leans toward KLAC amid equipment demand, but UMC's partnerships signal foundry recovery potential, presenting trade-offs in growth versus value.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron's AI models currently lean toward KLAC due to its consistent trend strength, prominent inclusion in top-performing semiconductor bots (e.g., 103% annualized returns), and superior relative momentum in recent market activity. UMC shows promise with sales growth and AI photonics catalysts, but KLAC's scale and positioning suggest higher probability of outperformance in the near term, barring sector downturns.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is KLAC is a Hold and UMC is a Buy.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
KLAC’s FA Score shows that 4 FA rating(s) are green whileUMC’s FA Score has 2 green FA rating(s).
- KLAC’s FA Score: 4 green, 1 red.
- UMC’s FA Score: 2 green, 3 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
KLAC’s TA Score shows that 4 TA indicator(s) are bullish while UMC’s TA Score has 2 bullish TA indicator(s).
- KLAC’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 4 bearish.
- UMC’s TA Score: 2 bullish, 5 bearish.
Price Growth
KLAC (@Electronic Production Equipment) experienced а +0.39% price change this week, while UMC (@Semiconductors) price change was -11.18% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Electronic Production Equipment industry was -5.00%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was -6.66%, and the average quarterly price growth was +104.91%.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Semiconductors industry was -7.85%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +10.34%, and the average quarterly price growth was +77.02%.
Reported Earning Dates
KLAC is expected to report earnings on Jul 23, 2026.
UMC is expected to report earnings on Jul 29, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Electronic Production Equipment (-5.00% weekly)The electronic production equipment industry makes equipment used to produce semiconductors. Such equipment includes wafer fabrication, plasma etching and photo-resist processing equipment. The industry also makes chemical vapor deposition processing systems and photomasks, which are high-purity quartz plates that contain patterns to define integrated circuits layouts. Applied Materials, Inc., Lam Research Corporation, and KLA-Tencor Corporation are examples of electronic production equipment manufacturing companies.
@Semiconductors (-7.85% weekly)The semiconductor industry manufacturers all chip-related products, including research and development. These chips are used in innumerable electronic devices, including computers, cell phones, smartphones, and GPSs. Intel Corporation, NVIDIA Corp., and Broadcomm are some of the prominent players in this industry. Semiconductor companies usually tend to do well during periods of healthy economic growth, thereby inducing further research and development in the industry – which in turn augurs well for productivity and growth in the economy. In the near future, demand for semiconductor products (and possibly innovation within the segment) should only expand further, with the proliferation of 5G, autonomous vehicles, IoT, and various AI-driven electronics set to herald a new, advanced chapter in the technology-driven world as we know it. With burgeoning prospects comes great competition. In 2015, SIA estimated that U.S. semiconductor industry ranks as the second most competitive U.S. industry out of 2882 U.S. industries designated manufacturers by the U.S. Census Bureau.
| KLAC | UMC | KLAC / UMC | |
| Capitalization | 252B | 52.3B | 482% |
| EBITDA | 6.06B | 118B | 5% |
| Gain YTD | 59.181 | 150.636 | 39% |
| P/E Ratio | 54.64 | 31.54 | 173% |
| Revenue | 13.1B | 241B | 5% |
| Total Cash | 613M | 134B | 0% |
| Total Debt | 6.15B | 56.7B | 11% |
KLAC | UMC | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 27 | 86 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 88 Overvalued | 37 Fair valued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 4 | 14 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 13 | 65 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 6 | 35 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 12 | 6 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 50 | 45 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
UMC's Valuation (37) in the Semiconductors industry is somewhat better than the same rating for KLAC (88) in the Electronic Production Equipment industry. This means that UMC’s stock grew somewhat faster than KLAC’s over the last 12 months.
KLAC's Profit vs Risk Rating (4) in the Electronic Production Equipment industry is in the same range as UMC (14) in the Semiconductors industry. This means that KLAC’s stock grew similarly to UMC’s over the last 12 months.
KLAC's SMR Rating (13) in the Electronic Production Equipment industry is somewhat better than the same rating for UMC (65) in the Semiconductors industry. This means that KLAC’s stock grew somewhat faster than UMC’s over the last 12 months.
KLAC's Price Growth Rating (6) in the Electronic Production Equipment industry is in the same range as UMC (35) in the Semiconductors industry. This means that KLAC’s stock grew similarly to UMC’s over the last 12 months.
UMC's P/E Growth Rating (6) in the Semiconductors industry is in the same range as KLAC (12) in the Electronic Production Equipment industry. This means that UMC’s stock grew similarly to KLAC’s over the last 12 months.
| KLAC | UMC | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 64% | 2 days ago 53% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 68% | 2 days ago 64% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 80% | N/A |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 81% | 2 days ago 67% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 76% | 2 days ago 62% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 78% | 2 days ago 67% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 3 days ago 75% | 10 days ago 62% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 9 days ago 61% | 2 days ago 61% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 72% | 2 days ago 58% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 76% | 2 days ago 74% |
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KLAC and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, KLAC has been closely correlated with LRCX. These tickers have moved in lockstep 85% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if KLAC jumps, then LRCX could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To KLAC | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KLAC | 100% | -9.47% | ||
| LRCX - KLAC | 85% Closely correlated | -9.85% | ||
| AMAT - KLAC | 84% Closely correlated | -9.71% | ||
| NVMI - KLAC | 79% Closely correlated | -8.58% | ||
| ADI - KLAC | 79% Closely correlated | -6.38% | ||
| QCOM - KLAC | 77% Closely correlated | -10.98% | ||
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