AMD slips even as Citi sees 'positive' sentiment ahead of Q1 results
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With first-quarter earnings season around the corner, investment firm Citi noted that sentiment is a "mixed bag" for the sector, though the sentiment surrounding AMD (NASDAQ:AMD), Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) and semiconductor capital equipment companies is the most positive.
Analyst Christopher Danely said that while the PC market looks to have "bottomed" and the automotive market is "solid," other areas, such as the data center, wireless and industrial end markets are still weak. 
"Our checks indicate visibility for [the second-half of 2023] remains limited and many companies are guiding for normal to above-normal seasonality in [second-half of 2023]," Danely wrote in an investor note.
AMD (AMD) shares struggled in mid-day trading, falling 3%, while Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and Nvidia (NVDA) saw fractional moves.
Danely added that AMD (AMD) and Intel (INTC) should both see downside pressure in the data center market, but the recent data about notebook sales in the first-quarter should bode well for Intel (INTC), while AMD (AMD) is benefiting from positive investor sentiment.
Conversely, investors are the most sour on Qualcomm (QCOM) and Micron (MU), due in part to weakness in the wireless and memory markets, respectively.
Analog Devices (ADI) is still the firm's top pick in the space and the firm is still recommending investors own Micron (MU), AMD (AMD), ON Semiconductor (ON) and GlobalFoundries (GFS) once the downturn ends, "as they should offer the most upside."
Last week, Bank of America said it prefers AMD (AMD) over Intel (INTC), as the company is likely to benefit from its Xilinx acquisition in the industrial and auto markets.