Qnity Electronics

Qnity sells materials that get used up every time a chip is manufactured, so it earns money on volume no matter which chipmaker wins the AI race. Sales jumped 22 percent last quarter to 1.4 billion dollars, and growth came from both halves of the business, with the connection and wiring side up 30 percent to 685 million dollars.

Adjusted earnings climbed 53 percent to 250 million dollars last quarter, and core operating profit rose 24 percent to 431 million dollars. That was the ninth straight quarter of profitable growth, and management just raised its full year outlook to as much as 5.65 billion dollars in sales.

The official bottom line actually fell. Reported net income dropped 31 percent to 136 million dollars, and reported earnings per share slid to 59 cents from 90 cents a year ago. Spin off costs and interest on new debt are eating into the headline number even as the underlying business grows.

Qnity has been a standalone public company for only about nine months, so there is barely any track record to lean on. Most of its sales come from Asia, and the company itself flags trade restrictions and geopolitical conflict as real risks, which means one policy change could dent that 5.55 billion dollar sales plan.