ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. (NYSE: ASX)

Sector: Technology Industry: Semiconductors CIK: 0001122411
Market Cap 15.01 Bn
P/B 1.44
P/E 12.98
P/S 0.73
ROIC (Qtr) 188.80
Div Yield % 2.08
Rev 1y % (Qtr) 9.12
Total Debt (Qtr) 9.41 Bn
Debt/Equity (Qtr) 0.90

About

ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd., commonly known by its stock symbol ASX, is a prominent player in the semiconductor manufacturing services industry. The company was established in 2018 as a result of the merger between Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. and Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd. ASE is a company registered under the R.O.C. Company Law and is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) under the symbol 3711 and on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol ASX. ASE's primary business activities revolve...

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Price action

Investment thesis

Bull case

  • Operating cash flow of 3.50B provides exceptional 20.54x coverage of interest expenses 170.44M, showing strong debt service capability.
  • Strong tangible asset base of 25.50B provides 2.71x coverage of total debt 9.41B, indicating robust asset backing and low credit risk.
  • Strong operating cash flow of 3.50B provides 3.53x coverage of SG&A expenses 992.29M, showing efficient operational cost management.
  • Robust tangible asset base of 25.50B provides 22.51x coverage of working capital 1.13B, indicating strong operational backing.
  • Operating cash flow of 3.50B fully covers other non-current liabilities 806.79M by 4.34x, showing strong long-term stability.

Bear case

  • Operating cash flow of 3.50B barely covers its investment activities of (5.20B), with a coverage ratio of -0.67, indicating heavy reliance on external financing for growth which may not be sustainable in a tighter credit environment.
  • Investment activities of (5.20B) provide weak support for R&D spending of 1.04B, which is -5.02x, suggesting potentially insufficient investment in innovation relative to other capital deployment.
  • Free cash flow of (1.62B) provides weak coverage of capital expenditures of 5.12B, with a -0.32 ratio suggesting additional external financing needs for growth initiatives.
  • Operating earnings of 1.59B show weak coverage of depreciation charges of 2.13B, with a 0.75 ratio indicating high capital intensity and potential reinvestment needs.
  • Free cash flow of (1.62B) represents just -0.57x of debt issuance 2.82B, suggesting concerning reliance on leverage rather than internal cash generation for growth.

Peer comparison

Companies in the Semiconductors
S.No. Ticker Company Market Cap P/E P/S Total Debt (Qtr)
1 NVDA Nvidia Corp 4,521.08 Bn 45.58 24.16 10.48 Bn
2 TSM Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd 1,648.98 Bn 31.97 13.84 31.18 Bn
3 AVGO Broadcom Inc. 1,565.97 Bn 67.71 24.51 65.14 Bn
4 MU Micron Technology Inc 366.37 Bn 30.76 8.66 12.43 Bn
5 AMD Advanced Micro Devices Inc 333.34 Bn 100.83 10.41 3.87 Bn
6 INTC Intel Corp 271.33 Bn 1,370.33 5.08 46.55 Bn
7 QCOM Qualcomm Inc/De 199.55 Bn 36.01 4.51 14.81 Bn
8 TXN Texas Instruments Inc 172.17 Bn 34.14 9.97 14.05 Bn

Industry comparisons

Current Valuation Value Ind Avg Percentile
EV to Assets EV to Assets 0.21 4.13
EV to Cash from Ops. EV/CFO 1.68 -370.81
EV to Debt EV to Debt 0.63 88.27
EV to EBIT EV/EBIT 3.70 -65.23
EV to EBITDA EV/EBITDA 1.64 22.97
EV to Free Cash Flow [EV/FCF] EV/FCF -3.65 -8.14
EV to Market Cap EV to Market Cap 0.39 0.80
EV to Revenue EV/Rev 0.29 20.31
Price to Book Value [P/B] P/B 1.44 5.16
Price to Earnings [P/E] P/E 12.98 9.20
Dividend Metrics Value Ind Avg Percentile
Dividend Coverage Ratio Div Coverage (Qtr) 0.00 2.39
Dividend Payout Ratio % Div Payout % (Qtr) 26.70 8.25
Dividend per Basic Share Div per Share (Qtr) 0.36 0.63
FCF Dividend Payout Ratio % FCF Div Payout % (Qtr) -0.64 9.91
Interest Coverage Int. cover (Qtr) 9.34 8.38
Growth Metrics Value Ind Avg Percentile
Capex Growth (1y) % Capex 1y % (Qtr) -173.95 -155.98
Cash and Equivalents Growth (1y) % Cash & Equiv 1y % (Qtr) 8.60 45.60
Dividend Growth (1y) % Div 1y % (Qtr) 10.56 5.64
EBIAT Growth (1y) % EBIAT 1y % (Qtr) -2.51 26.23
EBITDA Growth (1y) % EBITDA 1y % (Qtr) 13.06 47.12
EBIT Growth (1y) % EBIT 1y % (Qtr) 6.29 25.83
EBT Growth (1y) % EBT 1y % (Qtr) 9.77 39.93
EPS Growth (1y) % EPS 1y % (Qtr) 0.31 24.64
FCF Growth (1y) % FCF 1y % (Qtr) -217.61 244.42
Gross Profit Growth (1y) % Gross Profit 1y % (Qtr) 14.46 43.10
Liquidity Ratios Value Ind Avg Percentile
Asset Utilization Ratio Asset Util Ratio (Qtr) 0.02 0.49
Cash Payout Ratio Cash Payout (Qtr) 0.00 0.09
Cash Ratio Cash Ratio (Qtr) 0.29 2.23
Current Ratio Curr Ratio (Qtr) 1.13 5.43
Debt to Equity Ratio Debt/Equity (Qtr) 0.90 0.34
Interest Cover Ratio Int Coverage (Qtr) 9.34 8.38
Times Interest Earned Times Interest Earned (Qtr) 9.34 8.38
Profitability Value Ind Avg Percentile
EBITDA Margin % EBITDA Margin % (Qtr) 18.00 -112.38
EBIT Margin % EBIT Margin % (Qtr) 234.88 -91.98
EBT Margin % EBT Margin % (Qtr) 6.88 -132.25
Gross Margin % Gross Margin % (Qtr) 16.80 47.73
Net Profit Margin % Net Margin % (Qtr) 5.60 -133.26