---
title: "BofA raised Soitec to €300 on photonics; GlobalFoundries named it a partner on a $1 billion chip platform"
description: "GlobalFoundries named Soitec, alongside CEA-Leti, as a substrate partner for its roughly $1 billion FDX Fusion program on October 9, the same day BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy at €300 on a silicon-photonics case. The new FD-SOI wafer demand reaches a Dresden fab in 2028, and only if Berlin approves."
publisher: "The Inference"
section: "Silicon"
published: 2026-10-10T21:14:38.840Z
modified: 2026-10-10T21:14:38.840Z
canonical: https://theinference.org/article/bofa-raised-soitec-to-300-on-photonics-globalfoundries-named-it-a-partner-on-a-1-billion-chip-platform
language: en
keywords: "Soitec, GlobalFoundries, Semiconductors, Silicon Photonics, Analyst Ratings"
---

# BofA raised Soitec to €300 on photonics; GlobalFoundries named it a partner on a $1 billion chip platform

> GlobalFoundries named Soitec, alongside CEA-Leti, as a substrate partner for its roughly $1 billion FDX Fusion program on October 9, the same day BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy at €300 on a silicon-photonics case. The new FD-SOI wafer demand reaches a Dresden fab in 2028, and only if Berlin approves.

## Dresden's new platform sits on a French pilot line

[GlobalFoundries](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/globalfoundries) [topped out its €1.1 billion Dresden expansion](https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/globalfoundries-marks-dresden-expansion-milestone-130000981.html) on October 9, 2026, and [unveiled FDX Fusion, a next-generation fully depleted silicon-on-insulator platform](https://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2026-10/69799510-globalfoundries-inc-gf-unveils-roadmap-to-deliver-the-world-s-most-advanced-fd-soi-platform-for-physical-ai-399.htm) for what it calls physical AI, with manufacturing there from 2028 [1][2]. The substrate is being developed with CEA-Leti and [Soitec](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/soitec) on a pilot line in France, a strained 70-angstrom silicon film meant to lift electron mobility about 25%; GlobalFoundries expects to spend roughly $1 billion on the platform, $250 million of it on the first toolset [3].

## BofA's €300 case is built on light, not Dresden

The upgrade that moved the stock argues a different business. BofA Securities [raised Soitec to Buy from Neutral and its target to €300 from €152](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/soitec-climbs-7-bofa-turns-095549785.html), citing a 90%-plus share of the key material in silicon photonics, and models photonics wafer revenue growth of 172%, 74% and 57% across fiscal 2027 to 2029, on take-or-pay contracts with major customers [4]. Soitec guided in September to photonics wafer growth of 2.5 to 3 times in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2027 [4].

The shares rose 7.25% to €163.45, a 269% one-year gain, at roughly 206.5 times consensus current-year earnings [5]. The base underneath is thin: fiscal 2026 revenue of €592 million and a 16% gross margin [6]. BofA's route to €300 runs through gross margin, forecast at 29%, 39% and 44% over three years [4].

*Chart: **BofA's €300 case asks Soitec to nearly triple its gross margin by fiscal 2029** Line chart of Soitec's reported fiscal 2026 gross margin of 16% and BofA's projected 29%, 39% and 44% for fiscal 2027 to 2029.*

*Fiscal 2026 gross margin as reported in Soitec's full-year results (May 2026); fiscal 2027 to 2029 as modeled by BofA Securities in its October 9 upgrade. Sources: GuruFocus; Investing.com via Yahoo Finance. [4][6]*

*Chart: **BofA's €300 target clears Soitec's convertible strike; the shares don't** Bar chart comparing Soitec's October 9 share price of €163.45 with its convertible bond's €206.46 conversion price and BofA's €300 target.*

*Soitec's Euronext price on October 9, 2026; the €206.46 conversion price set at issue of the €500 million convertible on September 18, 2026; BofA Securities' target issued October 9, 2026. Sources: Ideal Investisseur; Ad Hoc News; Investing.com via Yahoo Finance. [4][5][10]*

## The FD-SOI leg is dated 2028 and conditional on Berlin

FDX Fusion is the leg the €300 case leaves out; the rationale as reported names no role for it [4]. GlobalFoundries' own release quotes BMW, Bosch, CEA-Leti, Infineon, [NXP](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/nxp), Siemens and [Tesla](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/tesla), and names no wafer supplier [2]. Soitec's part runs through Manfred Horstmann, who runs GlobalFoundries' European fabs and described the pilot line [3]. No public document sizes what the program would add to Soitec's revenue.

Demonstrator silicon is due for customer evaluation in early 2027, a first process design kit in mid-2027 [2]. GlobalFoundries puts the platform's [serviceable market above $18 billion by 2030, a company estimate](https://cryptobriefing.com/globalfoundries-7nm-fdx-fusion-chip-platform-2028/) [7]. Development is to proceed through the IPCEI Advanced Semiconductor Technologies program, subject to German federal government approval, and the start of work is contingent on it [1][8].

## Someone sold below 5% on the way up

The re-rating has not cleared everyone out. JP Morgan Chase & Co. [told the AMF it fell below 5% of Soitec's capital](https://www.boursier.com/actions/actualites/news/soitec-jp-morgan-chase-co-sous-les-5-du-capital-995338.html) on September 30 through a market sale, leaving 1,702,796 shares, 4.75% of capital and 3.80% of voting rights [9]. The [€500 million convertible issued on September 18](https://www.ad-hoc-news.de/boerse/news/corporate-news/soitec-announces-successful-eur-500-million-bond-offering-soitec-stock-costs-eur-170-40/70226403) carries a 0.50% coupon and converts at €206.46, about 26% above the October 9 price [10].

## Two gates decide it: Berlin, then 2027 silicon

Watch German approval of the IPCEI program, then demonstrator silicon in early 2027. Until then photonics carries the multiple, and the convertible strike marks where committed money sits. The re-rating is a photonics story; the FD-SOI sequel waits on Berlin and arrives in 2028.

## Takeaway

Soitec's re-rating is a photonics story; the FD-SOI leg waits on Berlin and 2028 silicon.

## Sources

1. [GlobalFoundries press release via PR Newswire, Yahoo Finance UK, GlobalFoundries marks Dresden expansion milestone, announces next-generation platform for Physical AI, 9 October 2026](https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/globalfoundries-marks-dresden-expansion-milestone-130000981.html)
2. [GlobalFoundries roadmap release via GlobeNewswire, FinanzNachrichten.de, GF unveils roadmap to deliver the world's most advanced FD-SOI platform for Physical AI, 9 October 2026](https://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2026-10/69799510-globalfoundries-inc-gf-unveils-roadmap-to-deliver-the-world-s-most-advanced-fd-soi-platform-for-physical-ai-399.htm)
3. [EE Times, Pat Brans, Manfred Horstmann: GlobalFoundries Bets on FDX Fusion for Physical AI, 9 October 2026](https://www.eetimes.com/manfred-horstmann-globalfoundries-bets-on-fdx-fusion-for-physical-ai/)
4. [Investing.com via Yahoo Finance, Navamya Acharya, Soitec climbs 7% as BofA turns bullish on silicon photonics demand, 9 October 2026](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/soitec-climbs-7-bofa-turns-095549785.html)
5. [Ideal Investisseur, Leading the SBF 120, Soitec stock surges over 7%, BofA upgrades to buy, 9 October 2026](https://www.ideal-investisseur.fr/en/stock-news/leading-the-sbf-120-soitec-stock-surges-over-7-bofa-upgrades-to-buy/26820.html)
6. [GuruFocus, Full Year 2026 Soitec SA Earnings Call Transcript, 28 May 2026](https://www.gurufocus.com/stock/XPAR:SOI/transcripts/8892140)
7. [Crypto Briefing, Diego Almada Lopez, GlobalFoundries unveils 7nm-class FDX Fusion chip platform with 2028 Dresden manufacturing target, 9 October 2026](https://cryptobriefing.com/globalfoundries-7nm-fdx-fusion-chip-platform-2028/)
8. [Unite.AI, Theo Nash, GlobalFoundries Tops Out Dresden Fab Expansion and Unveils FDX Fusion, 9 October 2026](https://www.unite.ai/globalfoundries-tops-out-dresden-fab-expansion-and-unveils-fdx-fusion/)
9. [Boursier.com, Soitec : JP Morgan Chase & Co. sous les 5% du capital, 6 October 2026](https://www.boursier.com/actions/actualites/news/soitec-jp-morgan-chase-co-sous-les-5-du-capital-995338.html)
10. [Ad Hoc News, Soitec announces successful EUR 500 million bond offering, 5 October 2026](https://www.ad-hoc-news.de/boerse/news/corporate-news/soitec-announces-successful-eur-500-million-bond-offering-soitec-stock-costs-eur-170-40/70226403)


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BofA raised Soitec to €300 on photonics; GlobalFoundries named it a partner on a $1 billion chip platform — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/bofa-raised-soitec-to-300-on-photonics-globalfoundries-named-it-a-partner-on-a-1-billion-chip-platform