The Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor Index, better known as the SOX, has gained 94% year-to-date as of late June 2026. That puts it on pace for its strongest annual performance since 1999.
Despite that uncomfortable historical rhyme, analysts are pushing back against the idea that chip stocks have peaked. The thesis is straightforward: order visibility stretching into 2027, record corporate earnings, and an insatiable appetite for AI infrastructure all suggest the fundamental story hasn’t cracked yet.
A rally that refuses to quit
The numbers are genuinely eye-popping. The SOX surged 82% in Q2 2026 alone, a quarter so strong it would qualify as an exceptional full-year return for most indices.
Memory-chip giants Micron, SK Hynix, and Samsung each reached $1 trillion valuations during the rally.
