10 Biggest Semiconductor Companies

The modern economy runs on semiconductors. The tiny electronic circuits, named for the electrical properties of the material from which they're made, are the brains for millions of devices, including space vehicles, car computers, smartphones, medical equipment, appliances, and more. As applications proliferate, semiconductor manufacturers continue to prosper.

These companies compete in producing smaller, cheaper, and faster chips for increasingly powerful and affordable technology products. Semiconductors can be divided into four main categories: microprocessors, memory chips, commodity integrated circuits, and complex "systems on a chip."

The numerous chipmakers range from household names with global reach to smaller suppliers little known outside their specialized market niche. Their chips are an essential input for manufacturers of technology hardware and industrial equipment. The semiconductor industry and chipmakers' stocks tend to be highly cyclical. Still, many investors view the sector as important given its secular growth trend and major role in the development of new technology.

Below are the 10 top semiconductor companies based on their 12-month trailing (TTM) revenue. This list includes suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, but is limited to companies with stocks publicly traded in the U.S., either on an exchange or in the over-the-counter market. Some foreign companies may report semiannually, resulting in longer lag times for their financials. All figures are from YCharts as of Dec. 22, 2022

#1 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSM)

• Revenue (TTM): $71.66 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $30.53 billion
• Market Cap: $400.1 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -32.9%
• Exchange: New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is the world's largest semiconductor foundry, the industry term for contract manufacturing of semiconductors on behalf of customers. Pure-play foundries manufacture integrated circuits on behalf of clients. Many semiconductor companies outsource the manufacturing of their chips to Taiwan Semi.

#2 Intel Corp. (INTC)

• Revenue (TTM): $69.54 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $13.30 billion
• Market Cap: $110.7 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -45.1%
• Exchange: Nasdaq

Intel primarily develops processors for the personal computer (PC) and enterprise server markets. Its Client Computing Group segment supplying PC processors and Data Center Group segment serving enterprise customers including cloud services providers are its largest divisions. The remainder consists of internet-of-things (IoT) solutions for retail, industrial, and healthcare markets; memory and storage products; autonomous driving technology; and programmable semiconductors.

The company produces motherboard chipsets, network interface controllers, and integrated circuits. In 2021, Intel unveiled a plan to invest aggressively in expanding its foundry business, including in the U.S.

#3 Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM)

• Revenue (TTM): $42.10 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $12.94 billion
• Market Cap: $128.5 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -34.8%
• Exchange: Nasdaq

Qualcomm is a global semiconductor and telecommunications company that designs and markets wireless communications products and services. Telecommunications companies worldwide use Qualcomm's patented CDMA (code division multiple access) technology, which has played an integral role in the development of wireless communications. Its Snapdragon chipsets are found in many mobile devices.

#4 Broadcom Inc. (AVGO)

• Revenue (TTM): $33.20 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $11.50 billion
• Market Cap: $234.5 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -10.4%
• Exchange: Nasdaq

Broadcom supplies digital and analog semiconductors as well as software for networking, telecom, and data center markets. It provides interfaces for computers' Bluetooth connectivity, routers, switches, processors, and fiber optics.

#5 Micron Technology Inc. (MU)

• Revenue (TTM): $30.76 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $8.69 billion
• Market Cap: $55.7 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -44.2%
• Exchange: NYSE

Micron Technology supplies memory chips including NAND flash products as well as rewritable disc storage solutions. Its products are used in computers, consumer electronics, automobiles, communications, and servers.

#6 NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA)

• Revenue (TTM): $28.57 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $5.96 billion
• Market Cap: $405.9 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -43.2%
• Exchange: Nasdaq

Nvidia is a leading developer of graphics processors for personal computers and enterprise servers. These graphics processing units, or GPUs, provide high-end performance sought by cryptocurrency miners, computer gamers, and those who work with computer-aided design.

#7 Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT)

• Revenue (TTM): $25.79 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $6.53 billion
• Market Cap: $89.4 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -29.4%
• Exchange: Nasdaq

Applied Materials is a leading supplier of capital equipment used to manufacture semiconductors as well as liquid crystal display (LCD) screens. The company's technology is used to produce high-quality silicon wafers and to deposit microscopic circuitry on their surfaces.

#8 ASE Technology Holding Co. Ltd. (ASX)

• Revenue (TTM): $23.04 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $2.69 billion
• Market Cap: $14.0 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -12.9%
• Exchange: NYSE

ASE Technology is a Taiwan-based holding company that provides semiconductor assembly, packaging, and testing services. The company was created by the combination of Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc. and Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd.

#9 Advanced Micro Devices (AMD)

• Revenue (TTM): $22.83 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $2.27 billion
• Market Cap: $109.1 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -53.1%
• Exchange: NYSE

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) is a multinational semiconductor company that designs and manufactures microprocessors, graphics processing units (GPUs), and other computer hardware components. AMD is a leading supplier of microprocessors for personal computers and servers, and its products are used in a wide variety of devices including desktop and laptop computers, game consoles, and cloud and enterprise servers. In addition to its core microprocessor and GPU businesses, AMD also offers a range of other products and technologies, including software, memory, and networking solutions.

#10 ASML Holding N.V. (ASML)

• Revenue (TTM): $21.27 billion
• Net Income (TTM): $5.85 billion
• Market Cap: $234.2 billion
• 1-Year Trailing Total Return: -24.9%
• Exchange: Nasdaq

Based in the Netherlands, ASML is a leading supplier of advanced lithography systems used by chip manufacturers to add circuitry to silicon wafers. Its machines help chip makers use costly wafers as efficiently as possible and to improve the performance of their chips.