Apple Supplier NXP Follows Tesla-Rivaling Smart Car With Smart City
Apple ( AAPL ) supplier NXP Semiconductors ( NXPI ) Tuesday unveiled a slew of smart-city ventures — adding to its autonomous car platform, announced Monday, that rivals efforts by Tesla Motors ( TSLA ), Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned Google and Ford ( F ). NXP’s smart-city technology will be used by the U.S. Department of Transportation to streamline traffic and toll payments via automatic vehicle identification as part of its Smart Cities Challenge. Smart card ICs (intelligence chips) will simplify eGovernment services, NXP said. The Smart Cities Challenge features seven finalists vying for $40 million to become a truly “smart city”: Austin, Texas; Columbus, Ohio; Denver; Kansas City, Mo.; Pittsburgh; Portland, Ore.; and San Francisco face a May 24 deadline for proposals. On Monday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx set out to visit the seven finalists. The winner will get $40 million “to fully integrate innovative technologies — self-driving cars, connected vehicles and smart sensors — into their transportation network.” NXP wants to be a part of that. To that end, on Monday NXP announced its BlueBox engine to help “drivers ‘see’ around corners and through traffic obstacles, thereby calming traffic and helping reduce accidents.” Canaccord analyst Matthew Ramsay expects NXP to outgrow the macroeconomically strangled chip market through 2019 on 10% long-term growth in its automotive segment. On the stock market today , NXP stock fell a fraction, to 84.75. NXP says it has a 14.5% share of the automotive chip market, following its December acquisition of Freescale Semiconductor. NXP CEO Rick Clemmer estimates 40% of the company’s sales stem from the automotive segment. In 2016, NXP is targeting high-single-digit to 10% automotive growth, despite views for 3% growth in vehicle unit sales, Ramsay wrote in a research report. NXP sees sales into in-car networking, infotainment, security, powertrain and safety offsetting the small unit growth. Ramsay sees NXP hitting its target of $9 earnings per share minus items in 2019, at a 15% compound annual growth rate. It posted $5.60 EPS ex items last year. The company also has a path toward $4 billion earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the same time frame. Ramsay kept his buy rating and 120 price target on NXP stock. Cree Joins NXP With Smart City Goals Also Tuesday, LED light-maker Cree ( CREE ) reported the results of a two-year study in Somerville, Tenn., where it says its XSP series luminaires had cut citywide lighting costs by a whopping 75% since their installation in August 2014. “We originally budgeted more than $100,000 a year for our lights, and now we budget $25,000,” Somerville Mayor Bob Turner said in Cree’s press release. “That’s $75,000 (in) tax dollars saved in the general fund.” Cree stock rose nearly 1% Tuesday.