ACM Research upgraded to Buy from Underperform at Jefferies

Jefferies analyst Nick Cheng double upgraded ACM Research (ACMR) to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $23.40, up from $9. The Dutch government announced advanced semiconductor processor export rules last Friday, allowing the export of ASML’s (ASML) oldest Arf immersion machine, NXT1980Di, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Since it’s expected that the machine can produce 16/14nm and even 7/5nm, China will likely buy as much equipment as possible during this “golden window,” says the firm. It raised its China fab capex forecasts as a result, saying China semiconductor production equipment players “are the biggest beneficiary with higher overall capex in China.”