Software R&D is a special type of capex, in principal - successful R&D execution buys recurring free cash flow in near perpetuity. Contrast this with TSMC who needs to outlay ~50 Billion every 2 years on a new Fab which will deprecate over ~6-7 years. If TSMC stopped buying fabs, then intel would beat them in ~2 years time - and TSMC would be out of business in 6-7 years.
Software R&D may be less efficient then the above math would imply, but there is a big range between perpetuity and some depreciating time horizon. R&D can also boosts growth prospects by expanding markets.
Re:Nvidia is now a $1T company
by Sohcahtoa82 on Wednesday May 31, 2023 @12:10PM
(#36140016)
> Contrast this with TSMC who needs to outlay ~50 Billion every 2 years on a new Fab which will deprecate over ~6-7 years.
Oof, that's the bit I forgot. TSMC's CapEx isn't just expansion, it's replacement. They're constantly upgrading to manufacture new technologies.
It makes sense now, thank you.
CapEx intensity can boil down heavily to the industry a company is in. If a software company is doing a lot of CapEx, it's likely growing pretty quickly. If a manufacturing company is spending a similar ratio of its earnings, it may well just be treading water.
As usual with these ratio metrics, a full understanding of the industry, or at least understanding that you can't compare apples to oranges, is important.
I would think that selling (or choosing not to buy) a stock because their P/E is low because their CapEx is high is short-sighted unless you don't think their CapEx spending is going to pay off.
It's like...back in 2012, I was talking to one of my wife's relatives at a Christmas party. He said he'd never buy Amazon stock because they've never been profitable. I said they're not profitable because every dollar they make, they put back into R&D. He would have 10x his money now if he had bought their stock.