But will the euphoria soon wear off?
Shares in UK chip designer ARM hit a record high in early trading today [5th February 2013], reaching 961p after the company reported a 16 per cent pre tax rise in profits for Q4.
The stock was up more than 6 per cent within an hour of trading, as the company reported profits of £80 million for the period compared to £69 million for Q4 2011.
The FTSE 100 company said sales were driven mainly by demand for its chip designs in smartphones, mobile computers, medical devices and microcontrollers.
ARM saw 36 processor licences signed during the fourth quarter along with 2.5 billion chips shipped.
Royalties also increased 21 per cent year-on-year, thanks to strong growth in the growth in the firm’s Cortex-A and Mali-based chips.
ARM’s shares have more than doubled in value since May last year, though as its stock nudges the £10 mark some analysts are starting to question if it is over priced.
Less than a fortnight ago the shares dropped 10 per cent when investors were spooked by falling sales at Apple, whose iPhone and iPad devices are powered by ARM processors.
