Texas Instruments (TXN, Financial) is the market leader in the sale of analog and embedded semiconductors. Shares rose on optimism that the available market for the company’s products will continue to expand as industrial and automotive markets include more electronic content in their products. The company’s long-term strategy of moving incremental business to its low-cost 300 millimeter wafer manufacturing process also continues to expand the long-term margin horizon for the company. Furthermore, Texas Instruments has continued to benefit from investor recognition of the company’s execution, disciplined capital allocation (returning all excess cash to shareowners) and the potential that the market for analog semiconductors is becoming slightly less cyclical, as the industry has matured and consolidated.
From Weitz Funds' first-quarter 2017 Balanced Fund shareholder letter.
