Billionaire Dan Loeb Pivots to AI and Sells Old Economy Stocks: His Top 7 AI Picks

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6. ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML)

Billionaire Dan Loeb’s Stake: 12,000 Shares Valued at Approximately $15.85 Million (NEW position)

ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML) makes the machines used to print chips — without its equipment, companies like TSMC, Samsung, and Intel simply cannot manufacture advanced semiconductors. It is the only company in the world that produces EUV lithography machines, the technology required to build the most cutting-edge chips at 2nm and beyond. But this is no hidden secret — everyone knows it, and that has swelled the stock’s valuation considerably. The stock has rallied 152% from its 2025 lows and now trades at around 51x earnings, well above its 15-year average of 34x.

Bears argue that the semiconductor industry is deeply cyclical — chipmakers expand aggressively when prices are high, then pull back as new capacity floods the market and demand normalizes. Some believe that sooner or later the AI semiconductor cycle will slow down, and that could deflate valuations sharply, as it has in previous cycles. However, despite this, billionaire Dan Loeb opened a stake in the company — like many others who believe the AI revolution is still in its early innings and that ASML Holding’s (NASDAQ:ASML) monopoly position makes it one of the most durable ways to play it.

Brown Advisory Global Leaders Strategy stated the following regarding ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) in its Q1 2026 investor letter:

“ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML), develops, manufactures and markets EUV & DUV lithography systems, metrology and inspection systems & related software solutions, continued to benefit from the build-out of AI infrastructure, maintaining a strong order backlog and positive indications regarding the adoption of High-NA tools required for the production of leading-edge nodes (2 nm and below), where ASML holds a monopoly position in Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines.”

While we acknowledge the potential of ASML to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than ASML and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

Click to continue reading and see Billionaire Dan Loeb’s Top 5 AI Stock Picks.

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