Sivers Semiconductors: Amid a Thirtyfold Surge, the GlobalFoundries Deal Confronts a Skeptical Analyst Community

Sivers Semiconductors shares hit an all-time high after announcing a photonics deal with GlobalFoundries, but analysts warn the stock is overvalued given weak Q1 financials and a 22% revenue drop.

The announcement of a photonics partnership with GlobalFoundries sent Sivers Semiconductors shares rocketing to a fresh all-time high earlier this week. The Swedish chipmaker’s stock surged 50 to 60 percent on Tuesday, closing at SEK-equivalent €8.41, before giving back some ground to trade at €7.95 — a roughly 5 percent pullback that traders attributed to profit-taking following a staggering 60 percent run over the prior 30 days.

At its peak, the stock hit €10.23, a record set on the day of the news. Since its March trough of €0.27, the equity has multiplied more than thirtyfold. Yet even with the recent dip, the annualized volatility of over 240 percent underscores just how speculative the name remains.

The partnership in plain sight

Under the deal, Sivers will integrate its laser arrays into GlobalFoundries’ SCALE silicon-photonics platform, targeting co-packaged optics (CPO) and linear pluggable optics (LPO) — two architectures deemed essential for the hyperscale data centres that underpin artificial intelligence workloads. The technology combines integrated photonics with wavelength-division multiplexing and advanced packaging to boost bandwidth density and scalability.

The market for pluggable optics alone is projected to reach $25 billion by 2030. Raymond Biagan, Sivers’ chief revenue officer, framed the tie-up as putting both companies at the forefront of silicon-photonics innovation, while Vikas Gupta, a senior fellow at GlobalFoundries, pointed to surging demand from AI data centres as a tailwind.

Skepticism from the analyst community

Despite the hype, several analysts have urged caution. Redeye’s Jacob Benon described the news as positive but not transformative, setting a price target of €6.20 — roughly 26 percent below the prevailing share price. A deeper assessment from Swedish publication Affärsvärlden went further, noting that GlobalFoundries had actually previewed the collaboration a month ago, and arguing the current froth appears overdone.

Their reservations are grounded in the numbers. Sivers reported first-quarter revenue of 61.9 million Swedish kronor, down 22 percent year-on-year, alongside an adjusted operating result of minus 13.8 million kronor. Operating cash flow came in at minus 49.2 million kronor. Management blamed the US government shutdown in 2025 and currency headwinds, but the financials offer thin support for a stock that has multiplied 20 times since the start of the year.

Pipeline growth offers a tentative counterpoint

One bright spot: the project pipeline expanded 77 percent to $799 million. Yet both Sivers and GlobalFoundries declined to provide financial specifics on the partnership when pressed by EFN, leaving investors to rely on expectations of future orders rather than concrete revenue.

The stock’s relative strength index stands at 66.2, indicating strong momentum but not yet overbought territory. For shareholders, the question is whether the GlobalFoundries alliance will translate into actual design wins and sales — or whether the market has simply priced in a promise that remains unfulfilled. The journey from the March low has been breathtaking, but the trajectory from here hinges on execution, not announcement.