In the semiconductor space, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) remains a top option for long-term investors to consider. A key rival to industry leader Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), the two chip giants continue to go head to head, battling it out for market share in this high-growth and high-profit segment. This will be important for AMD stock holders moving forward.

Notably, AMD stock has continued to perform very well, recently trading at an all-time high above $200 per share. AI-related catalysts continue to drive AMD and rivals higher, with seemingly no end in sight.

For those bullish on the chips space, here are three more reasons why AMD deserves a solid look as a core portfolio holding.

Solid Financials

AMD’s Q4 revenue climbed 10% to $6 billion, past the $60 million expectations. The company’s data center segment soared 65% because of PC market improvements, but weaker guidance caused clouding doubt for investors. 

Q1 sales are hoped to be $5.4 billion with a potential $300 million, facing Wall Street’s $5.7 billion estimate.

AMD’s CPU sales slowed because GPU demand is taking flight instead, but long-term projects still look bright by EPS estimates.

By looking at financial forecasts, projections point to a 97% stock rise by fiscal 2026. AMD stock opening the curtains to new AI GPUs and potential in the AI PC market makes the company a worthy investment.

Expansion of AI Development Tools

AMD has polished its AI development tools in ROCm 6.0, enhancing software and GPU support for Radeon RX 7900 XTX, RX 7900 XT, RX 7900 GRE, Radeon Pro W7900, and Pro W7800 GPUs. 

This broadens the selection for AI researchers and engineers, emphasizing Radeon desktop GPUs at cheaper prices. Currently, it lacks support for Radeon RX 7800XT or RX 7700 XT which may be addressed in future ROCm versions.

AMD enhances ML Development tools with ROCm 6.0, including Radeon PRO W7800 and RX 7900 GRE GPUs and ONNX Runtime supports, opening up to various ML frameworks for local AMD hardware.

AI Track Expansion Solution for JR Kyushu

AMD made public that JR Kyushu Railway Company has adopted the AMD Kria K26 System-on-Module for automating track inspection, enhancing efficiency and accuracy while meeting Japan’s rigorous railway safety standards. The AI-driven solution operates over 1,455 miles of railroad tracks and puts safety with regular inspections in the spotlight.

Kazuhiro Sakaguchi, Deputy Manager at JR Kyushu, praised the efficiency improvements achieved by shaking hands with Tokyo Artisan Intelligence (TAI) to deploy an AMD-powered solution for enhanced track inspections. The solution comes in the form of a vision computing box, using high-speed image processing and AI abilities.

Thanks to the FPGA-based Kria K26 SOM, it does inspections at 12 mph and uses an AMD Zynq UltraScale+™MPSoC specifically made for extensive functionality. 

Buy AMD Stock

While the roads in the AI chip sector mostly lead to Nvidia, AMD presents a great alternative with its lower price-to-sales ratio and potential.

AMD is set to get into the ring with Nvidia and its MI300 chip series, backed by giants like Meta Platforms. Look out for big sales growth from AMD’s new products in 2024 and beyond.

On the date of publication, Chris MacDonald did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.